


In Their End is Our Beginning

by Carlyn (Carlyn7865)



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-07
Updated: 2016-01-07
Packaged: 2018-05-12 09:37:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 50,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5661610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carlyn7865/pseuds/Carlyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daniel disappears during SG-1’s mission to contact a society descended from the ancient Sumerians. Secretly in love with Daniel, Jack is especially relieved to get him back. But something is not quite right.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Their End is Our Beginning

“Carter, anything?”

Jack glared at the tops of the mud brick buildings surrounding him. Tall enough to block sunlight from reaching the narrow alleys between them, the structures were so damn densely packed Jack was starting to feel an affinity for that rat in his college psychology course forced to run a maze for a handful of corn.

Difference was that rat was not heavily armed. Plus, Jack’s prize was much more valuable.

 _Just my entire world._ Or he would be, if Jack just had the courage to tell Daniel how he felt. _God, please don’t let it be too late._

Pain lanced across his knuckles, and he looked down at the hand he’d fisted into a ball so tight his fingers ached. Cursing, he shook it out with a bone-cracking snap of his wrist.

Three hours. Three hours since Daniel had wandered off…or was forcibly removed from them. One of the priest initiates – a young man who had taken an inordinate amount of interest in his archaeologist much to Jack’s annoyance – was missing, too. Carter had stayed in the temple square to see if anyone there could help figure out where they’d gone while Jack and Teal’c searched the surrounding area.

He drew in a deep breath, blowing it out in a gust of air. It did nothing to ease his tension.

“Carter!” he called again into his com.

“I’m here, sir,” Carter said after a moment. A crunching noise accompanied her reply and Jack surmised she was putting some distance between herself and anyone who might over hear. “Sorry. I’m not having any luck. The priests are still in the temple. No one else will talk to me except to say your negative energy has disrupted the natural forces.”

Right hand tightening around his radio, Jack grabbed the bill of his cap with his left hand. He snatched it off his head and smacked it against his thigh. “Geez, how powerful can these natural forces be if they can’t deal with a little shouting now and then?”

“Well, I think it was more the–”

“Okay, so I manhandled a few of their priests, too, but damn it, one of them took Daniel, I know it. They’re lucky all I did was yell and shove them around a bit.”

“Yes, sir. Do you want me to keep trying or come join you and Teal’c in the search?”

“They really need the sky or the wind or someone to tell them where this kid might have gone? Nobody has a guess?”

“I tried speaking to Enu and some of the other priests after you left. They insist they don’t.”

“What about somebody else, someone not a priest?”

“As I said, sir, no one is willing to talk to me. I think they fear Enu’s disapproval…wait a minute.” A scraping sound, more crunching and Jack imagined Carter moving further into the labyrinth that was the city, her boots grinding to dust the chunks of mud brick that seemed to rain off the structures in never ending showers.

“What?”

“Sir, I’ll get back to you. I might have something.”

“Carter?” Jack slammed the cap back on his head. She had damn well better get back to him. The last thing he needed was another team member missing.

Jack squeezed his eyes closed. How the hell had a simple meet and greet turned into S and R?

**Twelve hours earlier**

Ambling through the wormhole, Jack inhaled a draft of warm air and scanned their surroundings. P4C-724: hills of sand and rock as far as the eye could see. A few meters off, there was a small pond, slightly larger than the physical therapy pool in the mountain, surrounded on three sides by dried grasses, palm-like trees and short frondy-leaved bushes. Sunlight glinted off the water and, temporarily dazzled, Jack turned his attention to the foliage. The second look revealed a deliberate pattern to the plants. Their placement was not haphazard as might have occurred naturally, but more ‘arranged’ around the pond with purpose, as though the natives had contacted some intergalactic gardening service for pointers.

Jack closed his eyes and tipped his face towards the sun. “Well, this climate ought to make you happy, sand boy.” He turned and winked at Daniel. “Though, I could do without the heat.” He dabbed sweat from his neck with the sleeve of his jacket.

Daniel grinned. “I do enjoy these desert planets. Aside from the fact it makes a nice change from the usual heavily forested conditions, it reminds me a bit of my early years in Egypt. Not to mention my time on Abydos.”

“Yet you do not believe this society is Egyptian in origin.”

Pulled out of his fond memories, Daniel blinked at Teal’c. “No. No, the MALP showed a statue…” Daniel craned his neck then sidestepped, moving around Jack so swiftly Jack was left staring dumbly after him.

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?” he yelled after Daniel’s back.

“To the oasis!” Daniel called over his shoulder, his pace never wavering. “The MALP showed the statue was surrounded by plants and trees. I’d bet it’s somewhere in there.”

Groaning, Jack waved the rest of his team forward. They’d spoken via the MALP to the city’s leader – Emu, or something like that – and been assured their visit was welcome. Still, Jack swept his gaze over the surrounding cliffs, the tops of the dunes, even the skies as they walked. Wouldn’t be the first time a Goa’uld ambushed them in the middle of the desert.

He picked up the pace as Daniel darted from view around a group of spiky plants. They caught up as Daniel was kneeling before the object of his search.

Standing seven feet or so above the sand, the statue glowed softly in the daylight.

“Shouldn’t this thing be made of stone or wood? I don’t recall ever finding an ancient idol sculpted from metal before…assuming that’s what this is.”

“It’s not steel or iron or any other metal native to Earth,” Carter advised. Jack turned to find she’d unpacked her hand-held diagnostic device and was sweeping it up and down in front of the statue. She tweaked a dial. “It’s not trinium either. There’s no naquadah…”

“What’s it made of then?”

“I don’t know, sir. But whatever it is, it’s not in my database.”

“Well, that’s encouraging. I was starting to worry this trip would be just another of Daniel’s cultural cruises.”

Jack slipped on his sunglasses against the glare and tilting his head, gave the statue a long once over. Though it purported to be a god, the figure was human, or humanoid, at least. He was broad of shoulder, lean of muscle (he was a god after all) and bare-chested. He might have been totally naked. Jack was tempted to take a peek under the drape that someone had tied over the statute’s ‘godhood.’ It was a fringed shawl-type thing, artfully arranged to protect the iron man’s modesty. The ends wrapped around his hips at a downward angle and were tied off somewhere between his navel and his dick – assuming the statue had one.

In his left hand, held down near his thigh, was what looked to be a shaft of wheat. Cradled in the crook of his right arm was a large book. Sat on top of his head was a headdress of some sort, conical, sprouting three sets of horns.

Nearby a plate of food rotted in the sun, this planet’s version of fruit flies making a banquet of the stuff.

Daniel grinned at them over his shoulder, a child in his happy place. “This is a representation of the Sumerian god Enlil. The Sumerians believed the gods were just like humans, only immortal. They breathed, experienced emotions, adorned themselves and required nourishment just like us. Everyday, someone would bring the gods an offering of food; this platter was probably left here this morning.”

Jack looked askance at the figure. “That’s their god, Enlil? You’re sure?”

“Yes.” Daniel skimmed a fingertip across the surface of the metal releasing a tiny avalanche of sand. “This is cuneiform, widely used in Mesopotamia, of which Sumer was part. The text identifies the statue as Enlil. He’s the patron god of Nippur.”

“Nipper.” Jack latched on to the only word that was remotely interesting. “Wasn’t that the name of the RCA dog?”

“Who?”

“You know, cute little floppy-eared guy.” Jack flapped his hands on either side of his head in imitation of the dog’s ears. “Cocked his head at the sound of his master’s voice.”

For a moment, Daniel just stared at him like he’d sprouted a second head then, shaking off the distraction, he continued as though the interruption had never occurred. “Nippur was the principle city-state in Ancient Sumer.” He turned back to the statue. “It’s interesting that the representation of the god is made of metal. I would have expected a clay figure.”

“What are you on about?”

“The statue. All indications are, this community has its basis in an ancient society, yet their god is made of a metal Sam can’t identify. You don’t find that the least bit fascinating?”

Jack slipped off his sunglasses, gave Daniel a hard look. “When have I ever said yes to that question? What I do find curious is that people who worship an ancient god have access to advanced technology. Remember that Emu character told us he was transmitting his greeting from their temple…”

“Enu,” Daniel corrected reflexively, his attention back on the text.

“Whatever.” It was Jack’s stock reply to Daniel’s offer of extraneous information.

With barely a pause to acknowledge the snipe, Daniel continued, “The ancient Sumerians were incredibly advanced. In addition to writing, they invented early forms of mathematics, wheeled vehicles, astronomy, astrology, advanced agriculture and architecture–”

“None of which would predict their having access to a radio.”

“They don’t live in a vacuum, sir,” Carter reasoned. “They have a working Stargate. They may have met someone willing to share their technology or maybe their god introduced it to them.”

“Doesn’t sound like any Goa’uld I’ve ever heard of.”

Daniel glanced up again, his mouth pursed in mid-translation. “Who said he was a Goa’uld?”

“You did, or at least you implied as much in the briefing when you said they were ‘taken’ from Earth.”

“Just because a Goa’uld brought them here, doesn’t mean they worship him. Look at the Cimmerians; they worship Thor and the Asgard.”

“You just said they worship this guy, what’s his name – Enlil.”

As though searching for a clue in their faces, Daniel looked to Carter then Teal’c before turning back to Jack, understanding twinkling in his eyes. “You’re confusing Sumerians with Cimmerians.”

“I’m confusing? You’re the one who said–”

“This argument is immaterial,” Teal’c interjected. “If Enlil is benevolent as the Asgard are to their followers, he is a potential ally for our cause.”

“Thank you, Teal’c,” Daniel said, relieved to have the argument ended. “That’s a very important point.”

“Let’s keep our eyes open anyway.” Jack scanned the sky again. “Everyone stay together. Daniel, no running ahead.”

Daniel surged to his feet, a small hail of sand tossed around them like microscopic confetti. He opened his mouth to protest but Jack stood his ground, raising his brow and giving him a look that dared him to deny he’d recently done just that. Daniel’s mouth snapped shut, his lower lip jutting on a pout.

 _God, I swear, I’m going to bite that lip someday…_ Jack looked quickly away, focusing on the shrine. “Are you finished here?”

“For now,” Daniel returned, blessedly oblivious to Jack’s discomfiture. “Based on the care given the god’s representation and this basket of fruits and grain I would guess this to be a place of worship. Enu can probably confirm that for me.”

“Always good to have someone around to satisfy your curiosity,” Jack said significantly. “Much better than having you wander off to find answers on your own. Let’s get to the city then. Teal’c, take point.”

Jack swept an arm in front of him, inviting Daniel to join Carter as she filed in behind their Jaffa teammate. Daniel shot him a slightly annoyed squint, probably to deter Jack from continuing in his ‘Daniel needs a leash’ theme. With deliberation, Jack placed his sunglasses over his eyes, a figurative wall meant to inform Daniel he had no intention of debating the issue.

Sighing, Daniel turned and followed his teammates. “The ground is surprisingly firm considering every inch is covered in sand,” he commented to no one in particular. “The only thing I didn’t like about living in a desert environment was how difficult it was to walk anywhere.”

“I was thinking the same thing.” Carter gestured to a series of rocky outcrops on their right. “My guess is the rock is not far beneath the surface. Much of this sand was probably part of those rocks at some point.”

As they topped a rise, Teal’c raised his staff, thrusting it like a pointer into a narrow valley below. “There is your city, Daniel Jackson.”

Four or so kilometers distant, the city – a sprawling jumble of mud colored structures – spread out to cover about half that amount of space. Jack estimated several hundred stone houses, none larger than a good-sized storage building. Here and there, canals – man-made it appeared – ushered water throughout the city. On the outskirts, gardens, both small individual parcels and large communal fields, dotted the land with variegated greens, reds and yellows. Brown blobs, animals of some sort, moved about in one of the fields.

“This is more like it.” Daniel pulled up short, taking a moment to appreciate the sight. “Those homes are likely built of mud brick, much more fitting for a society based in ancient Mesopotamia.”

Fishing his binoculars from a pocket on his vest, Jack dislodged his sunglasses with a finger. The lenses swung from their lanyard, impacting his chest with a dull thump. He tucked the binoculars up under the bill of his cap. “Talk about city living,” Jack grumbled. “There’s barely enough room to walk between houses.”

“That’s because they walk on the buildings, not between them. Or, at least that’s how it worked in ancient Sumer. I would expect to see people on the roofs, though, and ladders so they can climb up there.”

“Nope, no ladders,” Jack announced.

“Well, it’s not unheard of for transplanted communities to find a different way of doing things from their Earth ancestors.”

Jack grunted acknowledgment. “Geez, New York has nothing on these guys. It’s like a damn maze down there.” From what he could see, narrow passageways ran between and around each building, but, unlike with cities on Earth, there was no discernable pattern; the buildings appeared to have been built wherever the whim of the builder placed it. As a result, some of the passageways took zigzag paths through the city while others led to dead ends. The inhabitants were uninhibited by the arrangement or they had become used to it. In either event, they seemed to have no difficulty finding their way around; quite a few of them wandered the meandering paths with purpose.

There was one path that deviated from this ‘norm.’ The path that led into the city was a fairly straight shot to a central point, an opening in the middle of the structures – _much like Central Park in New York to continue the analogy_ , Jack thought, _or the courtyard of the Pentagon_. More fitted for the park comparison, the space was dotted with booths covered in colorful canopies, their edges flapping in the warm desert breeze. Groups of people walked from stall to stall, pausing to look around and talk to others gathered there.

 _Must be a market place_ , Jack surmised, his interest instantly quelled.

For some reason, his eyes latched on a couple dressed entirely in black and he followed them as they wound their way from the market, exited the city via a predetermined route and joined a steady stream of people towards a narrow bridge that crossed to what amounted to a small island.

Whether the people had dug out the canal system or just manipulated a providentially placed stream, Jack found himself admiring their engineering. A large channel – twice as wide as those that provided water for the inhabitants – had been dug in a rough square around a separate plot of land. Three kilometers square by Jack’s estimation, the island was ringed with a ten meter high brick wall. The area behind the wall was divided by other walls into three sections. The far side took up half the space and contained half a dozen square buildings of varying size. The side nearest them was divided in half – the front half an empty yard and the back taken up by an enormous structure that Jack wanted to call a pyramid, but which he sensed was really something else.

Jack’s mouth ticked in annoyance at the fact he knew this stuff thanks to Daniel. “Let me guess,” he muttered to the object of his irritation, “The big thing in the back is their temple.”

“Yes. It’s a ziggurat.”

Lowering the binoculars, Jack tucked them away as he slid his sunglasses back on. “Interesting that the temple is fortified like a maximum security facility but the living space is not. There’s even a moat, for crying out loud.”

“Maybe they have no reason to surround the city with defenses. It could mean they have no enemies.”

“Or that’s what they want us to think.”

Daniel gave him a disapproving glare. “Do you ever not go in expecting an ambush?”

“No,” Jack said, walking off before Daniel could try to convince him – as he always did – that it wasn’t necessary in this case. “Let’s get down there.”

Carter moved to Daniel’s side. “So, what does mythology have to say about Enlil?”

“Oh,” Daniel replied brightly, pleased that someone asked. “He’s Sumerian, as I said. Generally, he’s seen as one of a triad of supreme Mesopotamian gods, along with An and Enkil. An is said to have represented the heavens, Enkil the earth and Enlil the atmosphere or, more usually, the wind.

“Supposedly, he introduced agriculture to his people, giving them the implements to work the land – the pickax, hoe and plow. Remember the shaft of wheat in the statue’s left hand? It probably symbolized Enlil’s participation in the city’s agriculture.”

“So, he’s a farmer,” Jack jeered.

“No, Jack. Remember he also holds the Tablets of Destiny. Enlil had the highest authority among the gods; his power was such that he could create and destroy and was therefore known as the ‘decreer of men’s fates’. He was said to bestow kingships on those he wanted to rule.”

“If he was so great, how come I’ve never heard of him?”

“Well, aside from the fact that you seem positively loathe to acknowledge me when I talk about anything related to mythology, it could be because his place of authority was supplanted in the region by Marduk. Marduk is a Babylon god. When Babylon invaded Sumeria some four thousand years ago, their king, Hammurabi, decreed that Marduk was now the supreme deity.”

“Must have been some tough god if a mere mortal could unseat him with a decree,” Jack said as he walked ahead, denying Daniel the opportunity to argue the point. The rest of the journey was spent in relative silence.

Forty minutes or so later, they approached the main entrance to the city. It hadn’t registered on Jack’s initial view through his binoculars, but he noted now that trees and bushes, like those found at the oasis, adorned the perimeter. Passing between two of the structures, Jack couldn’t resist scraping his fingers along one of the walls. Fine particles of sand, loosed by his probing, sloughed off, adding to the small piles of debris at the base of the wall.

“Looks like they could use a contractor,” he commented dryly. “This building is in need of some serious repair.”

Daniel danced his fingers just above the surface, careful not to touch. “As I predicted, it’s made of sun-dried mud bricks. As you can see, the building material is not very durable. My guess is they rebuild a portion of the city every couple generations.”

Jack shook his head in disbelief and led them into the center of the village, the well-trampled path showing him the way. There were multiple fire pits, on the edge of the ‘market,’ with cooking pots hunkered down in the middle. Multiple doorways opened into the buildings, but none had doors.

Theirs looked to be a simple life. There was no outward sign of the technology they knew these people possessed.

Residents began spilling from the structures as they passed. _Like they were warned of our arrival_ , Jack thought. By his estimation a few hundred had joined them by the time they crossed into the open area. He pulled off his sunglasses to get a better look. He was struck first and foremost by their scant wardrobe.

“Loincloths? Seriously?” he smirked. The majority of the men were clothed similarly to the statue they’d found in the oasis. Enough of them had a similar physique that Jack suddenly felt old.

“This is interesting,” Daniel chirruped behind him, “Research suggests that by the end of Sumerian rule – which is when I’m guessing these people left earth since they’re still worshipping Enlil – everyone was wearing tunics, using the shawl for accent. I wonder why the men went back to wearing just the skirt?”

Carter elbowed Daniel playfully. “If you had a body like that, wouldn’t you show it off?”

“How do you know he doesn’t have a body like that?”

Carter was taken aback, but Daniel’s brow rumpled in a manner that signaled intrigue. Jack tendered a lop-sided smile, passing the remark off as his own attempt at play and turned away. In his head he berated himself for blurting without filters and quickly put his mind to work on something that wouldn’t get him into trouble, giving the crowd a purposeful scrutiny.

This was not a tall race of people, most of them shorter than Carter. There were way more men than women. Adorned in what Jack assumed were the tunics Daniel mentioned earlier, they likewise sported fringe on the shawls embracing their waists. As with the men’s hipwear, every color of the rainbow, from indigo to natural beige was represented. Most of them had jewelry of some kind: Beads, woven necklaces, drop earrings. They were very stylish in their mediocrity.

It suddenly occurred to Jack, the women kept to the background, giving deference to the men. He put that down to a cultural belief that a ‘woman’s place was in the home.’ Not that he knew anything about this culture; they just looked a little less socially advanced than some. There were no children present, which might explain the absence of women, childcare generally seen as ‘women’s work.’

He cut his gaze to Carter, whose mouth pursed like she’d just sucked a lemon. Jack took her sour look as confirmation of his assessment. Unless it interfered with their mission, he wouldn’t be surprised if Carter asked a few questions about the role of women in this society.

As Jack took in the people loitering on the periphery, one individual stood out. Not because of any particular attribute of the man himself, but because of his seemingly targeted focus on his team. More specifically, Daniel.

Narrowing his eyes, Jack looked the kid up and down, committing every detail of his appearance to memory. He was young, early twenties, Jack guessed. Taller than those around him, like most of the others there, he wore his shoulder-length hair in loose waves. Clean-shaven, his chiseled jaw stood out with movie star prominence. His lips tended towards thinness, not unlike Jack’s own, but the smoldering fire of his amber eyes distracted the viewer from that little imperfection.

His upper body, exposed for anyone to see (and admire if they were so inclined), was lined with taught, lean muscle. Clearly used to physical labor, his shoulders were wide enough to accommodate a fifty pound sack of grain, his arms beefy enough to lift it there. Beneath the fringed wrap, his waist was narrow, his hip bones visible beneath the wrapping. What Jack could see of his legs looked as well-proportioned as the rest of him.

 _This kid could have been the model for their god statue_ , Jack growled internally. _He’s damn near perfect._

Another young man, slimmer but still ridiculously healthy-looking, joined him. He was of average height for his society, topped by a mop of tightly curled dark hair. As he turned, Jack noted the boy’s eyes, a cold steel grey, fixed on the Adonis, ignoring Daniel completely. Adonis turned and spoke in his ear. The mop-haired kid gave him a slightly hurt look then walked briskly away.

Jack watched him go, until his gaze fell on a small man, so stooped and wrinkled, Jack considered he just might be one of the original inhabitants brought from Earth. Draped in a loose-fitting robe, he had a conical hat pulled down over the top of his head: it looked like he was wearing a big acorn. The man shuffled his slow way to the forefront of the crowd. Unprompted, the people moved aside opening the way to SG-1.

“Daniel Jackson.” In spite of his advanced age, the ancient one bowed neatly at the waist. Amazingly, his hat stayed in place.

Daniel mirrored the gesture. “Enu. Please, call me Daniel. Thank you for inviting us to your village. This is Colonel O’Neill, the leader of our group, his second in command, Major Carter.”

Enu bobbed a filial nod to each as they were introduced.

Daniel stepped aside, pointing over his shoulder. “And this is Teal’c.”

His eyes widened, and Enu looked slightly aghast. “A Jaffa! They are servants to the evil ones.”

The crowd stirred, and as though of its own volition, Jack’s hand cradled the barrel of his weapon, maneuvering it into a defensive position.

“Teal’c is no longer aligned with the Goa’uld.” Daniel raised his voice above the murmuring, at the same time raising his hands in a plea for peace. “He has renounced them and has been in allegiance with us against them for several years.”

Enu gestured, a short, quick chop of his hand, which immediately silenced the villagers.

Jack held his stance until Daniel turned and laid a hand across the one that gripped his gun. Daniel looked him in the eye, nodded. 'Trust me'. Relinquishing his hold on his weapon, Jack had to tear his eyes away from Daniel’s.

“Then you are familiar with the damage the Goa’uld have wrought?” Enu asked as Daniel turned back to him.

“We are. They are an enemy of our people. Many have died or been enslaved by them. It is our goal to stop their reign of terror in the galaxy, um, among the stars.”

“Our people, too, have suffered.”

Jack stiffened, his eyes cutting a wide swath across the village. “They’ve been here?”

“No. However, our history is filled with tales of horror. Our forebears, removed from their original home world, told of a time when the evil ones freely swarmed through the portal, decimating families, their Jaffa herding off our people to be their slaves.”

Daniel frowned, a sympathetic expression. “I am sorry for your losses.”

“As I said, that was long ago. They have had no sway since Enlil chose to oppose them.”

“You are fortunate to have such a champion. Our people, and many others living on planets like this one, are still subject to their atrocities.”

“Which brings us to why we are here,” Jack cut in, earning a glare from Daniel. Jack’s brow surged, his eyes widening. 'Get on with it'.

“Um, yes,” Daniel relented. “We are interested in learning more of your god, Enlil. It is our hope that he will assist our people as he has yours.”

“Do your people not entreat Enlil to act on your behalf?”

“No. While your way of life was once common in a certain portion of our population, our people long ago put aside the old ways. We depend more on ourselves than the gods for our existence.”

“From what you tell me, Daniel, it does not seem as though that was the wisest choice.”

“You may be right. Which is why we’ve come to meet Enlil.”

“Is he here?”

Daniel and Enu turned as one to face Jack. Enu wore a look of surprise, while Daniel skewered Jack with a look that said, ‘will you just let me do my job?’

“He is not,” Enu replied, swiftly recovering himself. “Enlil shows himself only when we have great need of him. It has been several generations since that was the case. Even I have seen him only once, when he named me Enu. May it be that visitors from beyond the stars will entice him to return.” He motioned to the crowd, and several men, including Daniel’s admirer, gathered to one side. “We must make preparation for the summoning ceremony.”

Jack’s mouth tightened in objection, but he managed to suppress a tsk of impatience. “What kind of preparation are we talking about?”

“The skies will tell,” Enu answered, his expression as cryptic as his words. He pivoted and limped toward the houses lining the back of the market, his people surging before him.

Watching them go, Jack turned toward Daniel, gave him a ‘what the hell’ look.  
  
“Most magic requires a certain cooperation from the heavens.” Daniel shrugged in the face of Jack’s exasperated glare. “Without the proper alignment of sun, moon and stars, they may as well be using a Ouija board.” He sidestepped Jack and followed after Enu.

Carter jogged to Daniel’s side. “You believe in their magic?”

“It’s not a matter of my belief. It’s what they believe that matters.”

“Clearly, they are convinced they can summon their god,” Teal’c said.

“Yeah, as long as the ‘stars’ cooperate.”

Daniel pulled up, harried. “You might as well resign yourself to the possibility this could take some time, Jack. Their code of practices was established thousands of years ago and they follow the prescriptions religiously. They believe the stars are intermediaries between themselves and the gods. If the conditions are not right, Enu won’t attempt the summoning ceremony no matter how much you complain.”

Rolling his eyes in frustration as Daniel and the rest of SG-1 turned to join the crowd headed to the back portion of the market area, Jack watched in fascination as the mass of people thinned and lengthened, forming a line to navigate a narrow passage between buildings.

“Hey,” Jack called, jogging to catch up to his team. “Where are we going?”

“To the temple.” Daniel pointed at the top of the structure visible on the other side of the stone wall Jack had noted earlier. “Well, to the temple complex anyway. That’s where they’ll consult the stars.”

“Of course it is.” Jack snatched off his cap, roughly dragging his fingers through his hair, throwing off droplets of sweat in every direction. He slammed the cap back on his head and blended into the worshipers headed to the temple, careful to keep Daniel in his sights at all times.

 _Looks like I’m not the only one keeping an eye on Daniel_. To Daniel’s right, five or six people between them, a young villager took intermittent ganders over his shoulder at the archaeologist. It took him a moment to confirm, those around him making it difficult to get a clear shot, but Jack had no doubt this was the same kid he’d seen ogling Daniel earlier.

He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise – his hackles were up. This kid’s interest was more than curiosity; he looked at Daniel like a starving man eyed a steak dinner. Jack knew that feeling well, having hankered for a taste of Daniel for longer than he cared to admit. Feeling more possessive than he had a right to, Jack vowed to do everything he could to keep himself between Daniel and that kid.

The light dimmed and the mob pressed tighter around Jack as they passed between the buildings. Jack craned his neck, trying to find Daniel, but the lack of sunlight and the congestion made it impossible. Coming back into the sun, he shoved against the throng, winding his way through them until he spotted Daniel crossing a bridge built over the moat surrounding the temple complex. He spit an expletive under his breath. The kid had managed to get next to Daniel who was, of course, more than happy to entertain the kid’s overtures, thinking he was just being friendly. They talked animatedly, like a couple of high school girls discussing a mutual crush.

Only in this case, Daniel himself was the crush.

Careful not to tip any of the citizens into the moat, Jack hurried across the bridge, following Daniel and the hundreds of others around him through an opening in the wall surrounding the temple complex. He found himself in an approximately seventy-five meter square open chamber. Most of the people began to mill here, breaking into small groups, while a smaller number followed the elders through a passage directly across the yard into the compartment with the ziggurat. Clearly, waiting for the elders to consult the stars was something they did on a regular basis and everyone knew their place: some were allowed into the temple square, others were not.

He caught a glimpse of Daniel as he passed through the doorway into the inner chamber. Unconcerned with protocol, Jack wound his way through the stragglers and loiters, and boldly marched through to the temple.

His initial view stopped him in his tracks. Larger even than the pyramid on Abydos, the style of this structure – ziggurat, Jack remembered Daniel saying – put that simple triangle to shame. While similar in overall form, the ziggurat took the design and ran with it. Retaining the classic pyramid shape, the structure really more resembled a series of progressively smaller blocks placed one of top of each other. There were three steep stairways to the top, one on the front and one on each side. There wasn’t anything like that on a pyramid.

A couple gently pushed their way past him, jogging him out of his absorption in the massive structure. Jack shook his head. When the hell had this stuff started to matter. Oh, yeah, when he discovered how much Daniel mattered to him.

 _Speaking of…_ Jack cast a lengthy gaze across the sea of humanity, none of the details of their individuality registering. There was only one face he cared to see.

He found Daniel several meters away, his head inclined to that irritating kid who bowed deeply before him. Straightening, the kid spun on his heel and joined the procession of men climbing the stairs of the temple. Jack counted about fifteen priests, ranging in age from Enu’s centenarian to several men in their twenties.

Taking just a moment to locate Carter and Teal’c, who stood at least a head above those in his general vicinity, Jack hurried to Daniel’s side. Carefully molding his face into some semblance of nonchalance, he slowed when Daniel turned his way.

“So,” he said casually, “That was some ride, huh?” He jerked a thumb at the temple complex entryway, not really concerned if Daniel understood his reference to the wave of people who practically ferried them all here. “Who’s that you were talking to?”

Jack cringed internally. _Smooth, O’Neill. Not at all possessive._

“Tamzi, one of the priest initiates.” Contrary to Jack’s fear, Daniel failed to notice the distrustful tone in Jack’s query. Or maybe he just passed it off as Jack’s suspicious nature. “Each generation learns the rituals and incantations from the generation before. The curriculum is quite fascinating: communicating with gods, healing, interpreting dreams, exorcism.”

“Exorcism?”

Daniel nodded. “To rid a home of evil spirits,” he said as though they encountered such a thing every day. “Right now Tamzi is interested in divination, observing celestial and meteorological omens to discern the will of the gods.” Daniel was very animated, as he always was when he had the opportunity to learn first hand from a resident of the living past. At least Jack hoped it was the subject matter and not the teacher that had his archaeologist so excited.

“Care to guess how long this – what did he call it, a summoning ceremony – will take?”

“No. But there’s no point in suggesting we try to hurry them along.”

“I wouldn’t even consider it.”

Daniel gave him a long, hard look, ‘bullshit’ written all over his face.

Meeting the silent challenge with a faint shrug, Jack turned his attention to the ziggurat. “So, this is the funkiest temple I’ve ever seen.”

“It’s a ziggurat. See that series of steps that seem to rise to the sky? It’s believed the gods use it to descend from and ascend to the heavens.”

There was movement at the top of the structure and the group of men, like a line of ants emerging from their mound, began winding their way down the front staircase.

“I don’t see anyone who looks like a god,” Jack commented. “Should we take that to mean they didn’t get in touch with him?”

“We don’t even know if he would actually appear in person at their behest. Remember the Asgard use holograms.”

“Yeah, but Thor’s followers aren’t nearly as advanced as these folks. Their god has shared technology with them.”

“Guess we’ll find out in a minute.”

The first of the summoning party touched solid ground. Enu was near the middle, assisted in his descent by two younger priests, each supporting him with a hand in his armpit.

“Wouldn’t it be easier if they just carried him?”

“You mean wouldn’t they get down sooner,” Daniel said archly.

Jack smirked, irritated that Daniel knew him so well. Of course the fact that Jack had begun to surge to his toes, dropping to his heels with a barely audible grunt of impatience might have tipped him off.

Finally, Enu neared the end of his descent. Jack’s knees twinged in sympathy as the old man stumbled upon landing. Still, he had to suppress the urge to leap forward and hustle Enu in his doddering shuffle as they waited for him to make it across the temple yard.

Puffing audibly as he approached, the priest drew a large breath as his escort took a step back. The inhalation seemed to fortify him as Enu instantly stood taller.

“I am sorry, my friends,” he lamented, still a bit breathless. “We have consulted the heavens but they have not given us a clear way forward. Now is not the time to call forth our god.”

“Any idea when might be the right time?”

Enu turned to Jack, lifted a patronizing smile, the same look Obi Wan might turn on an impatient Luke Skywalker. “Soon. In the meantime, let us celebrate our friendship. It will please Enlil to see that people once lost to him are eager to build an alliance with his followers.”

Enu lifted his hands and, with a grand gesture similar to something Jack had once seen his grandma use to shoo her chickens, ushered his people towards the doorway in the wall at Jack’s back. Next door was another large open area and a collection of low buildings, Jack remembered from his initial view of the city.

The people started moving as directed, and Enu lurched after them. The other priests filed in behind – a ceremonial requirement it appeared – and Jack was gratified to see Daniel’s admirer among them. At least he wouldn’t have to stomach a repeat of the gabfest he’d witnessed earlier, because there was no way he was leaving Daniel alone with the kid again.

Jack watched the kid pass, waiting until he was a safe distance away before, with a grand gesture of his own, he invited Daniel to precede him. Squeezing into the yard already seething with the city’s inhabitants, Jack gently elbowed aside any one who stood between him and Daniel as his archaeologist deftly wended his way through the crowd.

“Colonel!” Carter waved at them from the right side of the chamber, and Jack gripped Daniel’s elbow, steering him toward their teammate. Teal’c moved in behind Carter as they arrived at her location. She gestured to a low platform nearby. “We were invited to leave our firearms there, sir.”  
  
Jack took a look around, assessing.

“There’s no danger here, Jack,” Daniel advised. “We would be a lot more comfortable if we got rid of some of this stuff.”

Turning a glare on Daniel that said, ‘would you stop pushing’, Jack ultimately conceded he was right: the heat was making all this equipment difficult to bear.

“All right,” he said, “we can do without the jackets and P-90s. Keep your radios and sidearms, though.”

They had no sooner bundled their weapons and backpacks against the platform, when a dark, petite woman drifted into the midst of them. In each hand she had a small tray loaded with fruits, nuts and cheeses. She waved them tantalizingly until Daniel lifted a small sample from the tray and began to nibble. Jack and Carter each grabbed a fig and, seemingly satisfied, the woman moved on to the next group.

Chewing absently, Jack watched her go, his eyes taking in the crowd around them. More women, together with children of all sizes, were now in attendance. Somewhere on the periphery, musicians plucked string instruments.

Carter flicked a finger over Daniel’s shoulder. “Enu is certainly given a lot of deference.”

Jack turned to follow the gesture. The old man was swallowed up by the high-backed chair he occupied, cut, it appeared, from an ancient tree. The seat was perched on the raised dais in the center of the courtyard. Young men, most dressed in the colorful skirts and shawls prevalent in the priestly class, continuously offered him plates and cups, most of which he waved away.

“It’s interesting; their society differs from their Earthly ancestor’s in that they have no heredity ruler, no king. Remember when we first contacted them, I asked to speak to him. I have to admit I was a bit intrigued when Enu told me he was their leader. Ordinarily, the king would be the high priest, but in this case, they’ve essentially made their high priest their king.”

“So this is more than just cow-towing to the guy whose family holds power.”

Daniel scowled at Jack’s description. “Well-trained, knowledgeable magicians enjoyed high social position. By the way, Enu is a title, not his name. It means chief priest.”

The priests led a small group of girls and boys towards the dais. From the side, a man called to Enu, the tone entreating. Enu stood shakily, raised his hands, and, his voice barely discernible above the murmur of the crowd, spoke a few words over them in what Jack could only guess was ancient Mesopotamian.

“It’s a prayer to Enlil to decree the fates of these young ones,” Daniel interpreted.

“It’s good to see that they consider the futures of the girls equally important as those of the boys. Except it seems their future is relegated to raising children and keeping house.”

“That’s another discrepancy,” Daniel said. A frown of disconcertment – or maybe he was sharing Carter’s disapproval – marred his handsome face. “According to much of what I’ve read, there were female priestesses in ancient Mesopotamia and they likewise performed rituals. In ancient Sumer, women were nearly equal to men: they owned property, engaged in business, they could initiate divorce proceedings – everything a man could do. That doesn’t seem to be the case here.”

“That sounds more like civilization,” Carter said slyly. “Equality for all.”

“More than you know. There were also no sexual taboos: homosexuality was an accepted way of life. There were hundreds of laws concerning relations between the classes, but there was no law which prohibited homosexuality outright.”

 _Would that our society was so advanced. Maybe then I’d find the courage to tell you how I much I want you_ , Jack thought sadly.  
  
“Daniel!”

The hail jarred Jack out of his fantasy as effectively as a bucket of cold water.

“Tamzi.” Daniel’s voice was warm, his return greeting enthusiastic. Jack wanted to puke.

Instead, he swallowed hard and, carefully molding his features to disguise his irritation, welcomed Daniel’s new friend into their circle with a curt nod.

The kid held a cup in each hand. He offered one to Daniel as he sidled up to the archaeologist so close Jack felt his brow jerk upward at the lack of daylight between them. He cheered silently when Daniel took an unconscious step back.

_Atta boy, Danny. No need to be too friendly._

Tamzi’s elated demeanor never wavered, the significance of Daniel’s retreat lost on him. Jack considered having a talk with the kid about personal space.

“Um, these are my friends, Samantha Carter, Teal’c and this is Jack O’Neill.”

Daniel caught Jack’s eye, gave him a confident smile. Apparently, he wasn’t as unnerved by Tamzi’s nearness as Jack was. Of course, Daniel would never make an issue of the young man’s overly solicitous attitude so no one would notice if Daniel did take issue with the behavior.

Except Jack. Jack was watching. Closely.

Tamzi motioned over a pair of boys with cups and a pitcher. Jack took a cup, sniffed the contents, his nose wrinkling in objection. _That’s some pretty strong yeast they’re using. Smells like my socks after a week off world_. “This is beer?” he asked.

“Yes. It is a special brew.” Tamzi smiled broadly at Carter as he handed a cup to her. “I am training to be a priest,” he said, like this was a bar and he was looking to pick up women. “In our culture, priests are very well regarded.”

“Where we come from priests are celibate,” Jack blurted, earning a bland grin from Carter and a scathing glare from Daniel. “What? Just making conversation.”

To Jack’s annoyance, Tamzi just smiled sweetly. “Fortunately, there is no such restriction on our priests.”

“We were just discussing that very topic.” Daniel shot Jack a look that dared him to protest. “Um, not the celibacy part, but how there are no restrictions on sexual expression. At least that was true in ancient Sumer of Earth history.”

Tamzi’s eyes widened minutely, his smile downgrading to brittle and unsure. Always in tune with those he met off world, Daniel shared a fretful glance with Carter before changing the topic. “We also noted that, as you said, priests are held in high esteem in your society. Major Carter was curious, though, why there are no female priests. My study of the culture from which yours evolved indicates that women practiced cultic rituals alongside men.”

Tamzi shrugged, though he looked at them warily, as though he read more into the question than Daniel had intended. “It has always been so. Like you, I have studied our history. From the time our people arrived here the premier task of our women has been to preserve and increase our population. I agree that perhaps the women’s role can be expanded however; I could not make such a suggestion. As a novice priest I am forbidden to disobey any of our tenets, no matter how strongly I disagree with them.”  
  
“No one is suggesting you disobey any rules,” Daniel assured him. “You said you’ve studied your culture’s history? What can you tell me about it?”

“As you suggested, our people were brought here many generations ago from another place.”

“That place is Earth. Our home world.”

“Yes, I believe that, though the place of origin is not named in our history.”

“Does your history describe who brought your ancestors here?”

“His name is Enlil, our god. You have seen his likeness near the portal.”

“Right. Is that a true likeness? Have you seen him?”

“I have not. As Enu said, it has been many years since Enlil has favored us with his presence.”

“Isn’t that what this summoning ceremony was for? To get him to come here?”

“Jack.”

“What?” The question was a formality. That ‘Jack’ had ‘leave this to me’ written all over it.

Daniel shook his head in an ‘ignore him’ kind of way. “What we’re really trying to determine…” Daniel’s lip crimped, protesting the need to ask “Is there any mention in the history of Enlil’s eyes glowing?”

Tamzi gasped. “You believe that Enlil is one of the evil ones?”

“We’re just trying to make sure.”

“Enlil opposed the evil ones! He brought our people here to protect them from those who would enslave them.”

“I’m sorry. We don’t mean to upset you. It’s just…we’ve never come across a society before that was not transplanted by the Goa’uld, the evil ones. We have to be certain Enlil is not one of them.”

“Our god has never done evil.”

“Apparently, he hasn’t been around enough to do much of anything,” Jack commented dryly.

Daniel shot him a glare.

“Enlil does not appear himself unless the need is great. But he does send us help through messages conveyed to the priests.”

“Does the history say when he was last here?”

“Not in many generations. Our history records that once Enlil lived among our people. He gave us writing, taught us to plant and harvest, taught us how to build our great city.

“As our community grew, he distanced himself. Perhaps it was the constant demand of so many…” A scandalized expression replaced Tamzi’s thoughtful one. “I am not saying he abandoned us. It is recorded that once the rain did not appear for two cycles. Our people were nearly destroyed by the resulting famine and disease. Enlil intervened, bringing life-giving water with him.”

“He brought the rain,” Daniel explained to his team. “Enlil is associated with storms.”

“He only comes in times of disaster, huh?” Jack grunted, dismayed. “What are the chances something that qualifies will occur in the next two days?”

A shout went up, followed by a corporate gasp, the sound lifting and building as it traveled outward. The people began slowly backing up as those in front of them retreated from a spot near the far wall.

“What’s going on?” Daniel asked Tamzi.  
  
“I do not know.”

Jack tensed. “So this is not part of your celebration ritual?”

“No. But I do not believe it is cause for alarm.”

Jack picked up his weapon, his team following suit. “Carter, Teal’c, check it out.” Daniel turned to follow them.

“You stay here,” Jack directed, putting up a hand to stop his forward motion.

“Someone might need help.”

“It doesn’t look all that dire. Besides, Carter’s trained to provide any help they need…unless you think that might be a translation emergency or something.”

Daniel answered Jack’s sarcasm with a snarky grin then turned and resumed his conversation with Tamzi. The kid flagged down the beer bearers, requesting a refill for himself and for Daniel.

Keeping his eye on the rest of his team, Jack stood within earshot of Daniel and his new friend. Used to tuning Daniel out when he got too verbose at briefings, Jack found their excited dialogue soon degraded into a vague buzz, with only one or two actual words penetrating the sanity-maintaining bubble with which he surrounded his brain.

It in no way kept him from noting their movement from the corner of his eye, and Jack turned his head, alarmed, when Daniel wrapped a hand around Tamzi’s forearm.

_What the hell? Is Tammy trying to make a move right here in front of me?_

He caught a glimpse of Daniel’s face. That was not indignation he saw there; Daniel was elated. Kid in a candy store ecstatic.

Jack released his tension with a harsh breath. What were they talking about? He searched his memory, sifting through the words that made it through his defenses. _Oh, yeah, Enlil…folklore… the underworld…sacred texts._

_Yadda._

“Sir?”

Jack moved a few paces away from the bookworms, squeezed his com. “Yeah, Carter, what’ve you got?”  
  
“There’s a set of…dolls, I guess you’d call them, reclining against the base of the wall. There are four of them, roughly human-shaped, made of clay. One is painted dark brown.”

“Painted? You think it’s supposed to be us?”

“That would be my guess.”

“What are they, voodoo dolls? Think someone objects to a treaty with us? Hoping this will put us off?”

“They’re not like any voodoo doll I’ve ever heard of. They don’t look especially menacing; more like kid’s toys. Still, it would be beneficial to know their true significance. Maybe Daniel should see them.”

Jack sighed, anticipating the look of self-satisfaction Daniel was about to hit him with. Who could have guessed it would turn out to be a translation emergency after all? “Wait there,” he directed. “I’ll bring him to you. Don’t let anyone else near those dolls.”

“Yes, sir.”

He turned back to Daniel, who was still in powwow mode with the kid, oblivious to the fact Carter had contacted him. The same mop-topped kid Jack had seen earlier approached. Tamzi gestured at Daniel. The newcomer nodded in acknowledgement then moved away a few steps. Daniel’s admirer followed. They spoke very briefly, the floppy-haired kid disappearing into the crowd while Tamzi returned to Daniel.

Jack took two steps in their direction. Light flared in the corner of his eye, and Jack turned to see a large puff of smoke rising not far from Carter and Teal’c’s location. Several horrified shouts split the air as the mass of bodies moved hurriedly in Jack’s direction. He anchored himself against the blow, but could not stand against the sheer number of people barreling into him. He cursed aloud as the sea of humanity carried him away from Daniel.

“Teal’c!” he called out in desperation. He raised his arm above the crowd and waved madly, hoping his team would realize his predicament.

Turned around during the press, Jack could no longer see Teal’c. Seconds later he knew exactly were to find the Jaffa as Teal’c let loose a roar.

“You will disperse NOW!”

Whether it was Teal’c’s size, his voice, which rolled out like thunder, or the stories passed down concerning Jaffa and ‘the evil ones,’ the directive had the desired effect. Seeing an opening, Jack waded into the rapidly detaching mob, headed for Daniel.

He pulled up short where he’d last seen his archaeologist. Daniel was not there. Two cups stood on top of the platform against which their weapons had leaned. Daniel’s jacket lay in the heap with the rest of his teammates’ but his backpack was gone.

“Damn it, I told him to stay put,” he muttered under his breath. He squeezed his com in a death grip. “Daniel! Come in!” He let go the mic, his grinding teeth threatening to drown out the static in his ear. He tried again, “Daniel, where the hell are you?” Again, he got no response.

He whirled on the people standing nearest him, irritated by the way they flinched from him. “Did you see where he went?” He indicated the area Daniel had recently occupied. “The young guy, Daniel. About so tall, wears glasses.”

Sharing nervous glances, the men all shook their heads, their women merely staring in mute terror.

Jack growled, moved on to the next group. “Someone had to have seen where he went. You!” He singled out a man, identifying him as another priest based on his dress. “One of my team, Daniel. Did you see him? He was with one of your guys, a priest. Tamzi.”

“I am sorry, lord, I have not seen your Daniel.” He pushed himself taller, elongating his neck to look survey the crowd.

 _Your Daniel._ The designation echoed in Jack’s head as the man looked around.

“Tamzi is not here,” he said a moment later.

“I know that. Can you tell me where he is?”

“Perhaps he is by the dais with Enu.”

Jack spun on his heel and hurried toward the dais. He gripped his com again, “Carter, Teal’c, you guys okay?”

“Yes, sir. We were just helping a little girl who got separated from her mother.”

“When you’re through there, meet me by Enu’s throne.”

“Is there a problem, Colonel?”

“I can’t find Daniel and he’s not answering my hails.”

“Right with you, sir.”

It was futile, he knew; he could feel it in the roiling pit of his stomach, but Jack had to give it one more shot. He squeezed his com until his fingers turned white. “Daniel, if you can hear me, and you’re just ignoring me, I swear this will be the last time you step through that ‘gate. Now, COME IN!”

The resulting silence was deafening. Or maybe his pounding heart drowned it out. He stepped up his pace.

As he neared the dais, an especially large priest apparently reading menace in his gait, moved to intercept him. Under ordinary circumstances, he might have stopped Jack. However, as common as losing Daniel was, these were no ordinary circumstances. The stakes were raised when Jack discovered he was in love with his best friend.

Holding his pace, Jack barreled into the obstacle. The guy shifted back a step. Jack dug in his feet and hit him again, this time knocking him to the ground.

Enu stood, slowly, painfully. “Colonel O’Neill!” he croaked out. “This is unacceptable, to put hands on a priest.”

 _There is one priest you had better hope I don’t get my hands on._ “Where’s Daniel?”

“I have not seen Daniel since the completion of the summoning ceremony. Is he not somewhere here? He does enjoy talking to–”

“Yeah, he’s big on talking. Me, not so much so let’s cut to the chase. Daniel was last seen with one of your apprentices, a guy named Tamzi. I last saw them both standing right over there. Now, they’re gone.”

The priest Jack had bowled over got to his feet. He glared at Jack, his eyes shifting to a spot over Jack’s shoulder as Jack detected the quickened footsteps of his team mates.

“O’Neill,” Teal’c greeted for both of them. “What has become of Daniel Jackson?”

“That’s what I’m trying to find out, only I’m not getting a lot of cooperation.” Jack turned a hostile sneer on the priest who once again placed himself between Jack and Enu. A second priest joined him. Undeterred, Jack looked at him with deliberate attention.

_Bring it._

The priest reached for him, and Jack grabbed his wrist, pivoting in preparation for throwing the man to the ground.

“Colonel!”

The edge in Carter’s voice was just enough to make Jack think twice about carrying through with the move. He released the arm with a sharp huff of breath and stepped back a pace.

“Let me try, sir.”

Jack shot his would be opponents a venomous look – You have no idea how lucky you are, boys – before roughly gesturing Carter forward.  
  
Carter bowed as she’d seen Daniel do earlier. “Enu, we meant no disrespect. Colonel O’Neill is upset. We wish only to determine the whereabouts of our friend.”

“Our priests have not been subject to such treatment since the evil ones came to take away our ancestors. Were it not for my regard for Daniel I would have you escorted to the portal at once.”

“Please,” Carter entreated. “We have been calling Daniel on our radios but he is not responding. Perhaps he got lost exploring your city.”

“Or,” Jack suggested, taking no pains to hide his distrust, “maybe something more sinister occurred.”

“Sinister?” Enu startled.

“Daniel was last seen with a priest named Tamzi. No one can find him either.”

“We need to locate Daniel,” Carter quickly jumped back in before Jack could actually accuse the kid of kidnapping. “He may be hurt or…”

 _Worse?_ Jack’s mind supplied. _If that little bastard has laid one finger on Daniel…_

“…otherwise in need of assistance.”

“You said Daniel is with Tamzi?”

“They were last seen together, talking about your history.”

A fond expression wiped the anger from Enu’s face. “Yes, your Daniel expressed an interest in our ancestors. In that way he and Tamzi are kindred spirits. Tamzi has taken it upon himself to learn about our past. He spends long hours, sometimes days at a time, in our archives.”  
  
Jack’s brows ramped up. “Archives. Like a library? Well that would be the perfect lure for a bookworm like Daniel.”

“What are you saying?”

“Just wondering if our erstwhile archaeologist wandered off on his own again or was tempted to disobey orders by an offer too good to pass up.” _Please let it be books that tempted him and not the priest._

The largest of Enu’s body guards shifted forward. “You cannot think that one of our priests would harm another, a guest of our village.”

 _Oh, I can. And I do._ The words rattled around in his head, but Jack carefully set his face to avoid revealing his thoughts.

“Do you wish to harm Tamzi?” Enu had gone from content to aghast in under three seconds.

“No. But I can’t promise I won’t if I find out he’s hurt Daniel. Now, tell me where I can find this archive.”

“It is forbidden for all but priests to enter the archive. Tamzi would not take your Daniel there.”

There it was again, that phrase: ‘Your Daniel.’ _It’s as if they know my secret or something._

“You’re sure he wouldn’t take Daniel to this library? You said yourself they’d become pretty chummy. You don’t think Tamzi would skirt the rules just this once to impress his new friend?”

“As I have said, it is forbidden–”

“Oh, for crying out loud!” In his frustration, Jack moved toward the dais. As one, the priests surrounding Enu closed in, forming a human wall that effectively cut off Jack’s access to the head priest.

“I cannot allow you access to the archives, however, as our guest, Daniel’s welfare is our responsibility. We will go to the temple and divine Daniel’s fate.”

“His **fate** is to go back to the SGC with us.” _With me_.

Enu flashed an enigmatic smile. “The stars will reveal all.”

“O-kay.” Jack shook his head. Leading Carter and Teal’c away, he turned to them just out of earshot of the dais. “Looks like we’re on our own.”

The priestly barrier separated as Enu hobbled down the two stairs to the ground and dragged his slow way towards the temple.

“Carter, you go with them in case their communing with nature actually nets results.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll talk to some of these folks, too. Maybe someone has information that will help.”

“Good luck with that. They didn’t seem especially willing to divulge anything when I asked.”

“Perhaps it was the manner in which you inquired, O’Neill.”

“Yeah, okay, I was angry. Carter, you’re not quite so scary. Maybe someone will talk to you.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Teal’c, you and I are going to scour this city. I’ll go across the bridge and see if anyone over there has seen Daniel or Tamzi. You check out the rest of the temple grounds. Unless you find something sooner, check in an hour from now.”

“Yes, sir,” Carter replied. Teal’c inclined his head in agreement. They turned and went their separate ways.

Jack watched them go for a moment, willing his heart to slow its maddening pace. “I’m going to find you, Daniel,” he vowed. “And when I do, you had better be all right.”

Spinning on his heel, he marched with more determination than any previous quest had ever engendered towards the moat and the city beyond.

~oOo~

**Three hours earlier**

Daniel glanced over his shoulder again, wondering at the wisdom of his action. The temple court – and his team – was long ago lost to the twists and turns of the underground passageways Tamzi ushered him through. Several times new tunnels opened, and though he tried to keep up with the direction they took at each intersection, he soon found it impossible to keep it all straight.

 _Shouldn’t have had that second beer_ , he reprimanded himself. Though he had to admit even thinking straight, he was unlikely to have passed up this opportunity.

He trained the beam of his flashlight past Tamzi’s ear to light the way but, based on Tamzi’s quick pace and sure footing, Daniel suspected he was the only one who needed the illumination. On their right a curtain fluttered in the breeze from their passing. In the scant light Daniel could just make out a small alcove dug into the rock behind it.

Guiltily, he fingered the com at his shoulder. He hadn’t checked his watch, but Daniel’s internal clock told him they had been in the tunnel at least half an hour. It wouldn’t have taken Jack long to notice Daniel had taken his pack and left the immediate area – especially since he seemingly expected Daniel to ‘wander off’ at any available opportunity and was keeping an especially close eye on him. No doubt Jack had hailed him multiple times, but the rocks surrounding Daniel would have kept the signal from reaching him.

“How much further is it?” he asked.

“Not far. We are nearly to the exit on the outer wall.”

“This tunnel doesn’t lead directly to the archives?”

“It does not. There is only one entrance to the repository and it is concealed on the rear wall.”

“Why did we have to come underground? Couldn’t we have gotten through to the outside by a doorway or something?

“Of course,” Tamzi replied, “but this way we can be sure that no one will know of our intent. It is well known there is a place within the earth where I go to meditate. No one will find it odd that I have come down here.” He slowed and turned to face Daniel, who lowered his flashlight to waist level.

“We’re sneaking,” Daniel paraphrased. “So, you probably planned those distractions to keep my team occupied, too.”

“It was necessary. I sense your Jack would not have let you come to the archives with me.”

 _My Jack?_ Daniel shook his head, passing it off as Tamzi’s peculiar perspective of their status as teammates. “You may be right. I just wish there was a way other than moving furtively about to get there.”

“As I explained, it is forbidden to bring outsiders to the repository. If you are uncomfortable using the tunnels, we can get there through the yard but that increases our chances of being discovered.”

Daniel gazed back down the way they had come then up the tunnel. Covert had never been his preferred method of operation, though Jack’s intransigence had made it necessary more times than he liked to admit. If they went back now and were caught, Daniel might as well give up any hope of seeing the repository. Jack would immediately order them all home and have Teal’c throw Daniel over his shoulder if he resisted.

Tamzi watched him, none of the fear he’d expressed earlier at the prospect of disobeying the rules evident. In fact, rather than frightened, he looked downright anxious.

_Probably because he doesn’t expect to be caught._

“Do you want to go back?” Tamzi finally asked, taking Daniel’s cogitation for reconsideration. He pulled a deep frown, seemingly more disappointed that Daniel might change his mind about accepting his offer than Daniel would be to forego the opportunity to examine documents that equated to archaeologist gold.

“We may still ask for permission,” Tamzi went on, “however Enu is unlikely to give it. Traditionally, only those in the priestly class and those studying for the priesthood are allowed access to the ancient archives.”

Seeing his dream of discovering the wonders of their library vanishing under the combined obstacles of military protocol and Sumerian bureaucracy, Daniel motioned Tamzi forward. “No. No, I don’t want to chance their declining the request; this is too great an opportunity to pass up.” _Jack will just have to understand._

Daniel winced. Despite Tamzi’s warning, it was far more likely that Enu would grant his request than that Jack would forgive him for leaving the team without notice to take advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity.

True to Tamzi’s prediction, they soon arrived at the end of the tunnel, their way forward blocked by a solid wall. Or so it seemed. Tamzi trailed his fingers over the right tunnel wall, and Daniel registered a soft ‘snick’ just before the wall in front of them cracked to let in sunlight. Squinting against the sudden brightness, Daniel put away his flashlight and moved beside Tamzi to help him shift the massive doorway.

He slid through the opening to find himself standing on the ledge beneath the great wall surrounding the temple complex. He gazed upward, just able to glimpse the top of the ziggurat. They had traversed the length of the temple grounds.

Tamzi slipped out behind Daniel, gesturing for him to follow as he walked further down the ledge. The sound of stone grinding on stone told Daniel the door was sealing on its own behind them.

Daniel glanced down the length of the canal circling the temple complex. It hadn’t been apparent from the other side, but now he could see that the moat was fed by a stream that meandered through the fields on its way to the city. He squinted into the distance, trying to determine the stream’s origin.

“Daniel, this way.”

Daniel startled, offering a chagrined smirk at the curious look Tamzi gave him. At least his new friend didn’t rant about Daniel getting lost in his own head the way Jack did. _If he knew you as long as I have, he’d be ranting, too,_ Jack’s voice argued. _And don’t even get me started on your getting lost in real time, wandering off…_

An unexpected smile tweaked the edges of his mouth, and Daniel shook his head, wondering at the way Jack’s snarky tone quickened his heartbeat. As much as it irritated him that Jack sometimes treated him like a preschooler on his first field trip, there was something comforting about the reprimands, something caring.

If only.

Of course Jack cared about him. He cared about everyone on his team, he’d proven it on more than one occasion. But Daniel longed for so much more; he needed Jack to care for him. To hold him. To kiss him. To love him.

“Daniel, are you coming?”

“Yeah, uh, sorry.” Daniel coughed-said, nearly choking on the timing of Tamzi’s question. Heat enveloped his neck, and he ran a shaky hand over his nape, hoping Tamzi hadn’t noticed or, at least, didn’t understand the significance. He let out his breath in a slow stream and shuffled after Tamzi.

There was not a lot of room on this side of the wall; the small trees and bushes that lined the walkway were more numerous. Rocks varied in size from golf ball to volley ball, littered the path.

“Is this another means of keeping people from accessing the library?” he wondered. “Making it nearly impossible for them to navigate the way there?”

“Yes and no. Only priests are permitted here; no one else would dare approach. Because those who maintain the other plants in the village cannot care for these it is up to the priests to do so. Clearly, we do not take care of this part of the wall as diligently as we should.”

Skirting the jagged barbs of a flowering plant, Tamzi cradled the fronds against his arm, raising them so Daniel could pass. Once Daniel was safely on the other side, Tamzi extracted his arm. As though they were no more nuisance than sweater fuzz, he pulled three small thorns from his forearm. He wiped his hand on this skirt, and lifting it, palm upward, quickly extended his fingers as if throwing confetti, but there was nothing there.

A scent tickled his nose and Daniel inhaled deeply. A waft of heady fragrance nearly overwhelmed him and he gently shook his head against a feeling of fogginess. _Must be the flowers_ , he guessed. The fog expanded, grew denser, bringing with it a near euphoric calmness.

Jack’s voice cut through the fog like the high beams of a tractor trailer. _You took a big whiff of alien pollen? Have you learned nothing in the last four years?_

Frowning at the reprimand, Daniel flinched, sidestepping a pace as Tamzi darted past.

“Come on! We are nearly there.” Sure footed as a monkey, Tamzi skipped around and between the foliage that lined the walkway.

Daniel shook his head again, though it did little to clear the cobwebs. Thankful that the lightheadedness was not adversely affecting his vision, he studied the bushes, picking his way around them. One obstacle, about half way to his goal, covered most of the pathway. Like the plant Tamzi had moved for him, this one was covered in unfriendly-looking barbs, but there were no flowers to offset their sting.

Deciding he had enough room to slip by, Daniel put his back to the bush, allowing his pack to take the brunt of the abuse and moved forward. He’d nearly made it past when his foot, placed incautiously close to the edge of the path, skidded out from under him. With a grunt of effort, Daniel pivoted and managed to land on the bank, his hip taking the brunt of the fall. One foot met the water streaming through the moat. Daniel gasped, an involuntary intake of breath, as the current slid up and over the top of his boot, a dribble of surprisingly cold liquid snaking its way past his ankle to pool at his heel.

Despite the hot arid air, a shiver ran through him. Daniel closed his eyes and groaned, the dizziness ante upped with a touch of nausea.

“Do you require assistance?” Tamzi called out.

Daniel opened his mouth, breathed deeply. “No, no. I can do this.” His head spinning, he dragged his leg out of the moat and scooted on his backside to the empty space beside the bush, thankful he had managed to avoid taking a frigid bath. Giving the plant a narrow look, he hauled himself to his feet, took another breath and, with much less grace than Tamzi had exhibited, crossed the remaining distance, tottering over the rocks like a drunken tight rope walker. Breathing hard, he leaned heavily against the wall.

Tamzi flashed him a sympathetic grin. “Your garments impede you, Daniel. Why do your people envelope themselves against the forces of nature?” He swung a bare foot in Daniel’s direction, spreading his toes wide. The soles were calloused, mud caked at the base of his toes. “There is energy within all living things.” Tamzi spun, flinging his arms wide. “Each of these plants, the sun and stars above, the ground beneath us, all contribute their power to those who are in tune with it. You, with all your coverings, are keeping the energy from reaching you. This is why you stumble; you are not in tune with the earth, the rock, the stream.”

“Actually,” Daniel offered a wan smile, “I stumble because I’ve always been a bit clumsy.” Shrugging, he continued in the face of Tamzi’s look of confusion. “I appreciate that you want to help me navigate your world better – I’m always open to new experiences. However, I’m also not a fan of bruised soles, so, if you don’t mind, I’ll keep my boots on at least until we’re past all these rocks.”

Tamzi looked slightly askance, still unable to understand Daniel’s reticence. “As you wish.” He gestured to his right. “Come. The place we seek is just through here.”

Daniel gaped at the seemingly unyielding wall of bush and brambles the young man indicated. “Tamzi, I’m not sure even Brer Rabbit could penetrate those thorns.”

“That is because this rabbit of which you speak does not know the wall’s secret.” Tamzi’s grin was positively cat that ate the canary. Thrusting out a hand, he waited only long enough for Daniel to grip it before hauling the archaeologist away from his mooring. Daniel stumbled a bit and Tamzi gripped a shoulder with his free hand, stabilizing Daniel’s stance.

“I can take your burden from you if you would like,” he offered.

Daniel felt his eyebrows slowly creep up his forehead. _Is he speaking philosophically or…_ “My burden?”

“The bag you carry. Like your clothing, it seems to unbalance you.”

“Oh. No, it’s fine. I carry this on all our missions. Really,” he added hastily when Tamzi gave him a dubious look. “I can manage it. Thank you, though.”

“You will tell me if you decide otherwise. I would not have you struggle when I am quite capable of assisting.”

“I appreciate that. You’re doing enough just allowing me to see your archives.”

A strange look passed over Tamzi’s features. Guilt? Regret?

_But why would he be feeling either? Must be my imagination. Probably just another byproduct of that flower’s scent._

Visibly shaking himself, Tamzi turned to the wall. He closed his eyes and raised his arms, bent at the elbows, until his hands were above his head. He gestured with his fingers, a vague symbol drawn on the air, at the same time murmuring to the tangle of foliage. The branches parted down the middle to reveal the opening of a cave.

Daniel crept forward and peered into the darkness. “If I hadn’t been standing right here when you opened this door, I would not have believed it.”

“It is all a part of being one with the natural world. Once you are attuned to the rhythm, moving within the boundaries is easy.”

“That’s how you did this, just being in tune with natural forces?”

Tamzi smiled enigmatically. “This is a bit more complicated. As I have said, only priests and those studying to be priests are permitted access.”

“Right.”

Tamzi leaned past Daniel and reached into a small recess just inside the entrance.

“Your light was acceptable for the underground passage, but this is sacred ground.” He opened his hand revealing a palm-sized glowing crystal similar in structure to the Asgard communicator Thor had given Jack. Daniel took it from him, tossing it gently in his hand. The stone had a pleasing weight. Tamzi nodded and retrieved a second light for himself.

Tamzi grinned, the smile of a friend excited to share a treasured hideaway, and led Daniel into the dark. The stones cast an otherworldly glow just bright enough for Daniel to locate the walls but not enough to reveal detail. He felt himself leaning slightly backward and surmised the path angled downward into the earth.

“Don’t get too far ahead of me,” he said, half-jokingly. “I’m not sure this light is enough to get me back out of here if we’re separated.

“Do not fear, Daniel. This passage is much less complicated than that which brought us under the temple complex. Because of the outside barrier, there was no need to make the passageway more difficult to navigate.”

“That’s reassuring.”

At the first turn in the passage, a right turn, it occurred to Daniel suddenly that he had missed an opportunity to radio his team, to let them know he was all right.

“Tamzi, how far down are we? I should probably contact my team and at least let them know I’m okay. It’s entirely possible Colonel O’Neill has already ordered a search of the city.”  
  
“Enu would not permit it. Besides, we are nearly there.”

Daniel found himself suppressing a sudden urge to sneeze, surprised that the scent of the big flowers reached him even here. He rubbed his nose as the heady odor once more unsettled him, finding it necessary to trail a hand along the wall to keep him walking straight.

 _I’d better take an antihistamine once we stop._  
  
The thought left him as quickly as it had come when, after a few quick turns, they stepped into a large underground chamber. The stone-lamps were not strong enough to illuminate the entire cavern, but Daniel felt his heart skip at the things he could discern. As his vision adjusted, several journal-sized items, dim as ghosts in the scant light, coalesced in the darkness.

Books. Or more correctly tablets. Clay tablets, no doubt covered in cuneiform.

“Wait here,” Tamzi directed. “There are more stones in the far alcove.”

Daniel nodded absently, the words reaching him as through a fog. A fog caused by his library–induced distraction.

Right?

The room blazed suddenly in ghostly light and Daniel blinked. There was a distinct halo surrounding his vision, and he squeezed his eyes closed, hoping the problem was just the unique light source. Stripping his glasses from his face, he dug the heels of hands into his eyes.

“I am sorry, Daniel,” he heard Tamzi say, though it sounded as though he was speaking through a funnel. “For those unused to the glow gems, the transition from daylight to their glow is striking.”

Daniel rubbed harder. “Just gimme a minute.” _Just my luck. I’m surrounded by four thousand year old books, and I probably won’t be able to read any of them. Wasn’t there a Twilight Zone episode on that theme?_

Yeah, that’s what this was – the Twilight Zone.

He dropped his hands, mindful of the glasses wrapped between his fingers. The halo was still there but, it no longer impeded his vision. As he watched, it backed off further until it was nothing more than a shadowy presence on the periphery of his vision. He put his glasses back on.

The view that met him took his breath away. The room was not large, only slightly larger than his lab. A series of cubby holes, approximately half a meter high by two meters long, were cut into each and every wall. Standing within them, lined up like very thin, very dutiful soldiers were stone tablets. Hundreds of them. A bit dazed, Daniel ambled to a roughly circular block of stone set in the middle of the room, a table of sorts, and took in the entire library.

Okay, not the Twilight Zone. More of a dream come true.

“You are pleased you have come, yes?”

“Yes. This is an amazing opportunity. It’s like a small scale version of the library of Ashurbanipal in Ninevah.”

“Ashur…”

“Ashurbanipal. He was a military leader in the region your people came from. He was also a scholar and lover of books. He sent scribes throughout all of the Neo-Assyrian Empire to retrieve or copy texts and bring them to him. He collected some 30,000 of them, though not all have survived. Thanks to him, future generations gained access to some of the greatest historical, scientific and literary works ever written.”

Tamzi cast his gaze over the books in his own library, clearly disappointed that his collection was not as great as Assurbanipal’s. “What a library that must be.”

“Was,” Daniel corrected sadly. “It was destroyed in 612 BC, the result of war.” Tamzi, ducked his head, a sort of gesture of respect, and Daniel’s gaze one again fell on the collection of tablets surrounding them. “Your library is impressive in its own way.”

Tamzi puffed up, a father proud of his progeny. “These texts contain the stories of our people, our history, our culture. Many individuals have contributed through the ages. Also here are incantations and instructions for rituals collected from generations of priests; all disciplines are represented – divination, medicine, exorcism. Where shall we start?”

“The magic you practice is fascinating, but, given that our time here is likely limited, I would be more interested in learning about your culture as a whole. Do you have anything like personal histories, maybe a diary and or a journal? Or something from your mythology, um, stories of your people and their lives here. Archaeologists have learned much about daily life in ancient Sumer through the stories of their heroes and the people’s interactions with the gods.”

Tamzi smiled, having caught Daniel’s enthusiasm, and moved to a corner shelf and began shifting through the stone tablets. “I know just the story,” he said. “It is not one of the earliest histories, but as you say, it is rich with details of the lives of these individuals.”

“Individuals?”

“Utu and Ashnan. It is written as a collection of missives between them.”

“Oh, like the letters of Heloise and Abelard.”

“Who?”

“Historical details are disputed, but the story goes that they were illicit lovers. She was a scholar, he her tutor. It’s said their love for one another was such that neither could resist it, though it was forbidden in their world.”

Tamzi looked enraptured, his attention captured with just that little information. “What happened to them?”

“Heloise’s uncle betrayed and punished Abelard in a manner you’re better off not knowing. He became a monk, Heloise became a nun. They were separated physically, but their spirits remained connected. There is a collection of letters written one to the other while they were cloistered. Many see the essence of their love woven through each one. Tradition has them reunited in death, buried together in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in eastern Paris, though that too is disputed.”

His gaze seemingly turned inward, after a moment Tamzi return with a shuddering breath. “Like your Heloise and…

“Abelard.”

“Yes, like them, Utu and Ashnan were lovers. Utu was a priest. Their union was likewise forbidden.”

“Wait, didn’t you tell Jack there were no sexual restrictions on priests?”

Having found what he was looking for, Tamzi pulled a volume from the shelf, hugging it to his chest. His expression was pained. “Utu and Ashnan were both men.”

“Men,” Daniel echoed. “Who loved each other?”

“Yes. It is not permitted in this society.”

“Why? I mean, the history of your ancestors on Earth indicates that all expressions of love were acceptable, including homosexual relations. I don’t understand why that would change once the society was transplanted here.”

“It is all in here.” Tamzi shifted the volume in his arms, extended it then pulled it back, before finally holding the volume out to Daniel. He wore a look of regret, like a father turning his favorite daughter over to the man she is to marry.

Just as reluctantly, Daniel took the tablet. Clearly this story was important to Tamzi. He looked down at the tablet. Embedded in the front were two small crystals, side by side in the center of the stone. They had not been visible when the book was cradled against Tamzi’s chest.

“What are these?” Daniel touched them reverentially. His fingers jerked back, a slight charge of electricity pulsing against his fingertips.

“Do not be alarmed. That is merely the life force of the gem. As I have explained, all things have life and energy.”

“I get that. I’ve just never felt it like this before.”

“You would experience so much more if you would unburden yourself of these heavy garments. Here, let me take your pack.”

Tearing his eyes from the tablet, Daniel blinked, confused for a moment. As Tamzi looked at him expectantly, Daniel realized what he had said and, turning his back to Tamzi unclipped his pack from his vest. Tamzi set the bag down beside the table, giving Daniel’s belongings their due reverence.

“Now, your feet.”

Daniel’s gaze went instantly to the toes of his heavy military boots. He’d walked across burning sand and broken stone in them and had never felt the least bit of discomfort. They protected him, sure, but were they also keeping him from fully experiencing the world’s they traveled?

As though it was a newborn, he gently placed the tablet on the table. In quick succession, he rid himself of his boots, socks and vest.

Tamzi favored him with a wide grin of approval. “There is a seat cut into the wall around that turn.” He aimed his chin at a vertical shelf of rock, beyond which Daniel could just make out an alcove. “You can sit there and study this book at your leisure. I will bring more lighting.”

Readily accepting the invitation, Daniel didn’t even wait for Tamzi to bring the extra glow stones before beginning his inspection. He turned the table over and stroked the text, marveling that the groves he felt beneath his fingers had been written thousands of years ago. He looked up, turned his head and sighed with regret at the many volumes he wouldn’t get to explore.

“I’ll never even finish this one before we have to leave,” he muttered to himself, caressing the jewels with his thumb. Again he felt the pinpricks of energy.

“You should take this tablet with you,” Tamzi suggested, overhearing as he approached with additional light.

“Is that allowed? I don’t want you to get into trouble.”

“It is necessary. You will gain insight into an aspect of our society that only a few even in our own community has knowledge of. It is important that you understand what has happened and what must come next.”

“Come next? Wait, if there’s some danger to my friends, I need to tell Jack.”

“Danger is what I am hoping to dispel by giving this to you. That, and to give rest to the ones whose story is told therein.” Tamzi brushed a hand across the edge of the tablet, the gentle touch of fondness.

It occurred to Daniel to ask what he meant by the comment, but given Tamzi’s clear affection for the story, he wrote it off as a booklover’s tendency to see the characters as real people.

“Let’s just see how much I can get through in the time we have,” he suggested.

Tamzi bowed. “I will leave you to do so. I will be nearby sorting through the magic tomes.”

Daniel nodded absently, already lost in his desire to learn the lovers’ story. Tamzi had suggested that the book contained letters, but to Daniel, it was more like poetry. Tender, loving prose.

A soft murmuring, as a voice in prayer, reached him through his preoccupation. The crystals nestled against his palm began to hum then pulsed in tandem, like the beating of twin hearts. He turned the tablet over and placed his palm over the gems.  
  
His vision blurred and, Daniel reached up to remove his glasses. He just needed to rub his eyes again. As his fingers hooked the rim, the hand rebelled, falling to his lap, dislodging the lenses so that they now perched precariously on the edge of Daniel’s nose. The hand slid off his leg, coming to rest on the stone seat beside him.

He turned his head to ask Tamzi if that had been his voice he’d heard but he lost him in the darkness that started to edge in the periphery of his vision. The pulse in his hand traveled up his arm and soon Daniel felt as if someone held a tuning fork to his chest. He dropped his gaze, noting with alarm that the jewels beneath his hand were glowing.

Even that light drew to a pinpoint, the world going black, and Daniel felt his body melt down in the seat. Amazingly, he was still cognizant of the stone tablet resting precariously on his lap and, panicked that it might plummet to its irreversible injury, Daniel mustered his resources to gather the book into his arms as the tiny circle of darkness closed.

~oOo~

**Present time**

His pace quickening, Jack turned the corner onto the narrow avenue that led directly to the ziggurat. Following Carter’s instruction, he raced across the bridge, noting for the first time that the ‘island’ upon which the temple complex stood was bedrock, and headed down the ledge that circled the temple wall.

He just managed to avoid breaking into a run when Carter and a young man – the guy Jack had seen talking to that Tammy kid – came into view.

“What have you found?” he gasped out as he stopped before them.

“The archives Enu mentioned earlier. Ea says they’re here, beneath the temple.”

“Beneath the temple, huh? Subterranean lair? Sounds like the perfect place to take someone to be alone with him.”

“Tamzi will not harm your friend.”

“Why should I believe you? He either caused or took advantage of a distraction to lure Daniel here. That does not sound like the acts of an innocent man.”

“There was no magic involved,” the boy said matter-of-factly. “To truly be effective, the doll requires something personal: a lock of hair, a piece of clothing.”

“What do you know about it?”

The kid made a soothing gesture, but there was something akin to disapproval on his face. Whatever his friend was getting up to with Daniel, he didn’t like it. “I set the dolls there at Tamzi’s request. He found reference to them in one of the ancient tomes.”

“What about that flare? Was that you, too?”

“It is a simple spell. It is not designed to harm, only to startle. Tamzi asked me to ensure that you were unable to follow them.”

Jack grunted, inclined to believe the kid was only doing his friend a favor. “So, how do we get in here?”

“I am not learned like Tamzi. Like most other initiates, I am learning what I need from my master. Tamzi is not content to wait; he must know all in as short a time as possible. He asked Enu permission to come here and study on his own.”

Carter grinned. “That sounds familiar.”

“Maybe,” Jack conceded, but he had a bad feeling the kid wanted more from Daniel than a simple exchange of information. “What’s this got to do with Daniel?”

“Tamzi has advanced much beyond the others in his study. He is practiced in the craft of divination.”

“Daniel mentioned something about that…reading omens, he said.”

“This is correct. The gods revealed to Tamzi that one would soon arrive who could assist him with a…an injustice he hoped to right.”

A curious tilt to her brow, Carter looked first at Jack then the boy. “That sounds like something that would be handled through your legal system. How could Daniel help with that?”

“That I cannot say.”

“Can’t…or won’t?”

“Sir.” Carter inserted herself between them. “Why Daniel went with Tamzi is not as important as discovering where they went.” She turned to Ea. “Do you know where the library is? Can you get us in there?”

Ea nodded, a hesitant bob of his head. “This way.” Brushing past Jack, no doubt eager to be clear of his scrutiny, Ea darted down the ledge, headed at a near run to the back of the wall. Jack followed, Carter right on his heels. Ea turned the rear corner and Jack lost sight of him for just a moment. As he rounded the turn, Jack pulled up with a shout when the kid came into view just a few meters ahead, standing before a tangle of thorned foliage. He put out a hand to prevent Carter from plowing into them.

“The repository is in there.” Ea gestured towards the bushes.

Looking over the obstacle, Jack searched for a way in. The thing looked nearly solid, as though it was a living wall. “What is this, a door? How do we open it?”

“I am not learned–”

“Bull!” Jack moved in on the kid, backing him into the stone wall with a forearm against his throat.

“Colonel!”

“Back off, Carter. He knows something; that’s why he came to you. He defied Enu’s directive not to cooperate. That says to me he cares about this Tamzi. His best friend maybe?” Jack moved closer, looked deep into the kid’s grey eyes…and pulled back suddenly.

“Shit,” he muttered. He was right; the kid – Tamzi – was gay. He knew because the concern he read in Ea’s eyes, his face, was much more urgent than one friend afraid another might get into trouble. Ea loved Tamzi.

With no way to prevent Carter from overhearing, he decided to be direct, hoping his 2IC wouldn’t read too much into Jack’s quavering voice.

“He’s more than a friend, isn’t he? You might not risk punishment for a friend, but for a lover...”

“Please do not harm him.”

“I don’t want to harm anyone; but if he’s done something to Daniel–” Jack broke off that thought, unable to even entertain the possibility.

“No!” Ea cried, horrified as he gleaned Jack’s meaning. “Tamzi would never betray me. He loves me, and I love him. He only needed your Daniel for the purpose I stated earlier.”

“If you two are lovers, then you can get us in here, because I don’t believe for a second that he wouldn’t have shared the secret with you.”

Ea chewed his bottom lip. He glanced at the hidden entrance, fear for his lover’s welfare at being discovered with their missing guest warring with the need to end the situation without harm to anyone.

“Look,” Jack tried to make the decision easier for him. “We just want Daniel back. As long as Tamzi hasn’t hurt him, no one else even needs to know that Daniel was with him. Or that you helped us find him.”

Unexpectedly, Ea gripped Jack’s vest, his hold that of a desperate man. “Please, you cannot say anything that will arouse suspicion concerning my attachment to Tamzi. Our love is forbidden. If we are discovered, we will both be put to death. Or worse.”

“Worse?” Jack looked at Carter, who shrugged.

“I cannot speak of it.”

“Yeah, well don’t worry; we don’t want to expose anyone. We just want Daniel back, whole and healthy.”

Ea looked from one to the other, still unable to decide which course of action would best suit his purpose. The longer he delayed his decision, the more agitated he became.

“Ea,” Carter finally said, placing a calming hand on his arm. “We all want the same thing; for Daniel to be returned to us and for you and Tamzi to go back to your lives. You trusted me enough to tell me where to find Daniel. Trust us enough now to help us get him home.”

Ea met Carter’s expectant look with anxious eyes. He blinked, then again; and, though tears were loosed every time his eyelids dropped, he stood taller as though his uncertainty was bleeding out in his tears. At last he wiped his face with the back of his hand, turned and said something to the thorn bush. The branches parted to reveal a chamber.  
  
Jack tugged his flashlight out of his pocket, switched it on and swung the beam over and through the opening. It revealed nothing more than a tunnel cut into the rock on which the temple was built. Descending at about a twenty degree angle, the path covered twelve meters or so before taking a sharp right. “How far back is this library?”

“Not far. The path turns several times but leads directly to the repository chamber.”

“Okay.” Jack unclipped the P-90 from his vest and handed it to Carter. “It’s probably going to be a little close in there for this.” By rote – something he automatically did when traversing the unknown – he slipped the safety off the nine mil on his hip. Carter’s mouth tightened but Ea was blissfully unaware of the significance of the move. Carter was a good soldier; she understood that sometimes, in spite of their best intentions, it was necessary to shoot. Jack was hoping it wouldn’t be necessary, but he had no illusions that Ea would forgive him if he had to use force.

He also had no intention of coming out of there without Daniel.

“Carter, you wait here with the kid. I’ll holler if I need help.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jack aimed his flashlight before him, following its light into the darkness. Only a few steps in, he felt as though the ground was swallowing him, it was so close. His elbows scraped the rock with nearly every step, and he could swear his cowlick touched the ceiling in places. Making a conscious effort not to stoop, Jack trudged quickly on.  
  
Making the right at the bottom of the slope, he let the beam play over the walls up ahead, searching for the next divergence in his path. The walkway continued its downward pitch for a few hundred meters before beginning to level off.

Two more turns in quick succession and Jack spied a dim light a few meters distant. He wanted to run, but found it necessary to measure his pace when he caromed off the left hand wall and cracked his head on the rocks above. It seemed a lifetime before he broke into the wide open space of the library chamber.

“Daniel?” he called the second he was in the clear. Cursing at the lack of response, he swung the flashlight in a wide arch, trailing the beam over countless shelves containing stacks of thin stone tablets. The light he’d seen emanated from two stones, about the size and shape of the Asgard long range communicators, resting on a raised surface in the center of the room. They cast a greenish glow, and Jack was reminded of a nighttime gator spotting trip he’d taken in the swamps of Louisiana as a teen. There was no mist – and the glimmer of a dozen hungry eyes was likewise missing – but Jack still found the need to suppress a shudder.

The raised surface turned out to be a large circle of rock, looking for all the world like a giant mushroom sprouting in the middle of the room. As he came around it, Jack noted a dark lump at the table’s base and beyond, two bare feet. The owner of said feet was hidden by an outcropping of rock, and hurrying forward, Jack suppressed a shout as he recognized the distinctive cammo print of Daniel’s BDUs.

Rounding the stone curtain, Jack pulled up short. Slumped in a chair carved from the rock, Daniel looked like a kid who had fallen asleep in front to the TV, a stone tablet snuggled to his chest in place of a teddy bear. His glasses were askew, barely hanging on to the tip of his nose.

Jack frowned. Daniel’s pallor was sickly, and Jack prayed it was a product of the bad lighting. He scooched Daniel’s glasses into place as he gently shook him awake.

Having wakened Daniel from an impromptu nap on more occasions than he cared to recall, Jack didn’t even flinch when Daniel jerked upright.

“Had a hankering to feel the sand between your tooties, did ya?”

His head rocking awkwardly on his neck, like a marionette whose strings were pulled too abruptly, Daniel stared, his forehead tense as he struggled to concentrate.

“Huh?” he said at length.

Jack blew out a sharp, impatient breath. “Where are your boots?”

Nearly pitching out of his seat with the movement, Daniel lurched forward. He gaped at his bare feet as though he’d never seen them before.

Finely honed reflexes – wound tight from stress and ready to spring – had Jack grabbing for his friend. “Damn it, Daniel,” he snarled. “Are you all right?”

Daniel pulled himself more upright in the seat. “I’m fine. I just…I fell asleep.” Daniel gave him a sheepish grimace. “I stayed up late reviewing my sources on Middle Eastern mythology last night.”

“Hmm. Well, if the logs are any indication, you haven’t been sleeping much at all the past few weeks. Hasn’t anyone told you once you’re home for the night, you don’t need to come back until your shift starts the next day?”

It was as if the comment came with a double shot of espresso. Daniel’s head came up, his deadpan expression sharpened into a glare. “You’re checking the times I sign in and out?”

“It’s part of my job.”

“Your job,” Daniel echoed dubiously.

“Yes, my job. And before you ask, I check up on Carter and Teal’c, too, though Teal’c seldom varies from his routine. We have to be able to rely on each other out here. Finding out if you’ve been pulling extra duty behind my back is just one way I have to determine the members of my team are fully capable of shouldering that responsibility.”

“Oh.” Daniel deflated, his ire leaving him like air from a leaking balloon. He drew a shaky breath. “Okay I admit it; I’ve been having trouble sleeping since…” He gave his shoulders a discouraged shrug, unable or unwilling to continue.

“Since we narrowly escaped a particularly nasty end on a ship filled with replicators?”

Daniel looked up. “You, too?”

“What, you think because I’m military I’m immune to the horrors we face out there? I’d lay odds Carter has had a few sleepless nights herself. You should have said something. Did you talk to Fraiser about it?”

“She’ll only make me take something to help me sleep. I hate those things; they make me feel loopy.”

“As opposed to the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed thing you’ve got going on now.”

Daniel shot him a flinty look.

“All right. I’m not going to bust your chops about it right now…because there are sooo many other things we need to talk about.”

Daniel pulled a weary breath, sighed, “Jack,” on the exhale.

There was no need to say more. Jack was well versed in Daniel’s various utterances of his name. This one said, ‘I’m too tired for this. Can we talk about it later?’

“Where’s that kid you were talking to at the party… Tammy?”

“Tam-zee. He’s not here?”

“Would I ask where…never mind. Do you know what happened to your boots?”

“I took them off. Tamzi said I needed to be in contact with the ground. It’s a common element in most societies that practice these kinds of rituals. Nature and the supernatural are one and the same. To gain access to the supernatural, you have to sharpen your connection with nature. The same principles are practiced by modern ritualistic societies: Stregheria, Wicca–”

“Yeah, whatever. Do you know where they went?”

“The Wiccans?”

“Your boots, Daniel. Pay attention.”

“Oh.” Again he looked at his feet, wriggled his toes. “I took them off over by that table.”

Jack followed the lazily aimed finger. There at the base of the table, on the opposite side from his pack, were Daniel’s shoes. His socks spilled over the top like a frozen mudslide. Taking two large steps, Jack snatched up the boots and returned to Daniel. He grunted as he came to his knees.

“I can do that,” Daniel protested as Jack began to work a sock over his left foot.

“Today?” Jack returned with a note of doubt. “Because I’m not convinced you’re up to it right now, and you know my irritation level is rising with every second we stay here.”

The atmosphere didn’t seem to be doing Daniel’s irritation level any favors either. He sat up suddenly. “I’m not a child, Jack!” Contrary to the comment, he kicked at the boot Jack held ready for him to slide his foot into. “I don’t need your help getting dressed! I don’t need you checking up on me to make sure I’m getting enough sleep! And I don’t need you holding my hand on missions to make sure I don’t wander off!”

His energy spent on the tirade, Daniel slumped back against the stone.

“Well, pardon me for giving a damn.” Pushing himself angrily to his feet, Jack chucked the boot into the sand at Daniel’s feet. “I’ll wait for you in the tunnel. Don’t take all day.”

He spun on his heel, but got only one pace away before a soft, “Jack,” pulled him back.

Daniel gazed up at him, exhausted, upset, looking every bit like the child he’s just argued he wasn’t.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know where that came from.”

Jack gave him a long look. “Let’s chalk it up to too little sleep and get out of here.”

“Okay,” Daniel agreed on heavy sigh. He gestured vaguely at his feet. “If you want to help…”  
  
Jack came to his knees again without comment. He shook the sand from Daniel’s boot, loosened the laces and held it ready for Daniel’s foot.

For the first time, Daniel relinquished charge of the item enfolded in his arms, setting it carefully to his side.

“New reading material?”

“Tamzi offered it to me. It’s a history of some of their ancestors.”

“Like a diary?”

“Not exactly, but it does recount their personal stories.”

“What’s that on the front?”

Daniel skimmed a finger over the protrusions on the tablet’s cover. “Crystals. I’ve never heard of Sumerian literature being adorned in this manner, but they do use gems for personal adornment so maybe this is just a local variation of that tradition.”

“Ah.” He patted Daniel’s foot. “You’re all done here.”

“Thank you. Can you get my pack?”

Jack shot him a look that said, ‘I liked it better when you were offended by my help’ – a look that was lost on Daniel whose attention was now on his book. Jack got up with an exaggerated groan and retrieved Daniel’s pack and vest from beneath the table. He fastened the pack into place and handed it over to Daniel.

Daniel pulled it into his lap, diving into the main compartment of the pack to his elbow. He came out with a folded bunch of bubble wrap, which he always brought with him ‘just in case.’ He began swathing the tablet in the wrap.

“You’re going to take that? Is that okay?”

Daniel shrugged. “Tamzi insisted.” He lowered the tome into his pack and tugged the zipper closed.

“That thing must weight a ton,” Jack carped. “Okay, not a literal ton,” he backed off when Daniel tossed him a harried look. “But it’s basically a rock, right? It’s got to be heavy.”

Daniel got to his feet and wrestled the pack onto his back. He swayed a bit and it was all Jack could do not to yank it off him.

He let his smirk of irritation smooth into a grin of support as Daniel turned his way. “You ready? Let’s go home.”

~oOo~

Trooper that he is, Daniel pushed himself to his full height as they exited the tunnel. If Jack hadn’t just seen him on the verge of collapse, he might have believed himself that Daniel was running on all cylinders. Well, three anyway. He made a mental note to pay closer attention. God knew how often Daniel actually pulled the wool over their eyes.

Carter stepped toward them and wrapped her arms around their recently missing teammate.

“Daniel,” she chided mildly. “You had me worried.”

Cheeks shading a self-conscious pink hue, Daniel closed his eyes and returned the embrace.

“Come on, Carter.” Jack slapped Daniel on the shoulder, the abrupt crack causing Carter to pull back. “Daniel wanders off on us all the time. We always get him back.”

Daniel threw him a dirty look but beneath the sneer Jack read gratitude for rescuing him from Carter’s overly solicitous hug.

His fingers knotted together before him – did he spend the whole time Jack was in there wringing his hands? – Ea stepped hesitantly forward. He craned his neck, looking around Jack, down the tunnel. “Is Tamzi coming out?”

“Tamzi was no where around,” Jack snarled, “and if he’s smart, he’ll stay out of sight until we’ve gone. We may have to consider whether this incident constitutes a breach in expected protocol from our potential allies–”

“No! Tamzi meant no harm, I’m sure of it. If you break off relations, he could be disciplined, perhaps even lose his status as an initiate.”

“He should have thought of that before he kidnapped one of my team!”

“Jack.” Again, his name expelled on a tired breath was all Jack needed to decipher Daniel’s request. ‘Please. Don’t.’

If the pleading quality of his voice hadn’t done it, the deep set of Daniel’s eyes, dulled from weariness and pain, was enough to convince Jack to cease and desist. “Yeah, all right. Come on.”

Their departure was delayed by a deep disembodied voice, “O’Neill. Have you located Daniel Jackson?”

“Yeah, Teal’c we got him. We’re headed to the temple now. Meet us there.”

Leaving Ea standing at the entrance to the library, Daniel’s teammates sandwiched him for the walk back to the temple complex. Having taken the rear, Jack noted that Daniel dropped the act of vitality he’d put on for Carter the minute her back was turned. Daniel’s shoulders slumped with fatigue – not to mention the rock he’d stuffed in his pack – his gait slow and plodding.

As they trudged back through the gate leading into the temple complex, Teal’c raised a hand in greeting, hurrying to intercept them. He went directly to Daniel.

“It is good to find you well, Daniel Jackson.”

Jack stomped all over Daniel’s, “Thank you, Teal’c,” with an irritable, “Well is a subjective term.”

Teal’c gave Daniel a close look, weighing both men’s responses against Daniel’s general appearance. A tired smile convinced him their friend had suffered no lasting harm. He gave Daniel’s shoulder a filial pat.

“Enu wishes to speak with you, O’Neill.”

“What the heck for? I want to get him back home.”

“I’m fine, Jack,” Daniel protested. “We need to keep diplomatic lines open. Go talk to Enu. In fact, maybe I should speak to Enu myself–”

“No.” Jack put a restraining hand on Daniel’s arm. “I’ll go. You’ll get to yammering and the next thing we know it’ll be dark.”

Daniel opened his mouth to protest, ended up yawning and, instead, face pink with embarrassment, agreed with a curt nod.

Jack turned towards the dais. “Carter, want to come with?” he asked a few paces on. “Teal’c, Daniel, stay here.”

Carter jogged up beside Jack. “How is he really, sir?”

“Just tired, I think. Listen, you’re better at this diplomatic stuff than I am. You want to take the lead here?”

“Of course, sir.”

Enu pushed himself to his feet as they approached. “We are all thankful you have found your Daniel.”

 _Again with the insinuation Daniel belonged to me_. “Yeah,” Jack acknowledged. “He’s pretty worn out; he’s had a rough time of it lately. He asked us to convey his apologies.”

“Please convey our best wishes in return.”

Jack nodded, cut his gaze to Carter.

“Thank you,” she replied. “We are sorry that we have to go. Would it be possible to return at a future time to resume diplomatic talks?”

“Of course.” Enu turned his attention to Jack, who felt the sudden urge to squirm under the rheumy gaze. “Though your behavior earlier was most distressing, Colonel, I now understand why you were so frantic to have your Daniel returned to you. You are all most welcome to return.”

“Well, thanks,” Jack said flatly, still a bit unnerved by Enu’s undue attention. _He couldn’t possibly know…_ “What do you mean you understand ‘now’?”

“We have divined Daniel’s fate. He is a very special individual.”

“Yes, he is. Mind if I ask what his fate might be?”

“His fate is to right a grievous wrong.”

“Sounds like Daniel,” Carter muttered.

“Yes it does,” Jack replied reflexively. “Got any more detail than that?”

Enu smiled as though Jack was a child. “The stars do not give specifics.”

“Of course they don’t. Carter, let’s go.” Jack turned and walked away.

“Thank you for your hospitality,” Carter hastened to add, backing away. “We look forward to returning one day soon.”

Finding Teal’c and Daniel right where they left them, Jack motioned Carter to take point. Daniel had removed his pack – which did nothing to relieve his slumped shoulders – and laid it in a heap at his feet. Without slowing, Jack bent and, with a muted groan, hefted the pack and handed it to Teal’c. Daniel gave him a quizzical look but otherwise consented to the assist.

“Let’s go home,” Jack said, falling back to watch Daniel’s six.

~oOo~

Midway down the ramp the wormhole resolved behind them. A fraction of his attention still on Daniel, Jack dragged his cap off as Hammond approached them.

“Colonel, is there a problem?”

Daniel would have a fit if he told the truth so Jack fibbed. “Daniel’s just a bit under the weather, sir.” It wasn’t an out and out lie, and would garner more sympathy than, ‘Daniel fell asleep on the job, sir.’

Hammond turned his attention to Daniel. “Doctor Jackson?”

Daniel swayed slightly, tendering a look of discomfort, like he was playing his part in a scheme they’d concocted to get out of work. “I’m sorry, General. I think it might be a reaction to the unfamiliar pollen. Or maybe it was something I drank.” He squeezed his eyes closed, and Jack wondered if Daniel was play-acting after all.

“There was a celebration, sir.” Jack waggled his eyebrows. Hammond was sure to remember the state in which they’d brought Daniel back after the party Gairwin and company had thrown after Thor took care of the Goa’uld.  
  
Hammond winced a smile. “Go on to the infirmary, son. We’ll debrief when you feel up to it.”

“Thank you, General.” It took Jack’s hand in the small of his back to get Daniel moving towards the blast door.

“You gonna make it?” Jack teased as they made it to the corridor.

Daniel gave him an angry squint in response. ‘Enough already,’ the look said

“Okay, okay. But if you face plant on the concrete, don’t come crying to me about how your swollen-shut eyes make it impossible to read.”

They rode the elevator to twenty-one in awkward silence. Daniel made a point of being first off when the doors opened, and marched not-quite briskly into the infirmary.

“Welcome home, SG-1,” Janet Fraiser greeted with a smile. “We’ll use these four beds for your post mission exams.” Her nurses already waited with their instruments of torture.

Sloughing off his jacket, Daniel climbed onto one of the beds. Without back support, he had to make himself sit up straight. Jack took the bed next to him.

After less than a minute, Daniel began to slouch, and Jack wondered if he shouldn’t suggest that Fraiser push him down in the bed and keep him there. He smiled grimly at the nurse who approached him carrying a honkin’ big needle and several vials for blood on a tray. Glancing back at Daniel, he noted his friend was likewise about to have blood drawn.

Chagrined he hadn’t thought to take off his jacket like Daniel, Jack slipped his arm out, letting the jacket fall to the bed. Needles had long ago ceased to faze him, but Jack was no fan of seeing his skin punctured. If the nurses noticed that he seemed to find something interesting on the wall, the ceiling or even the bedside table at the very moment they gouged him, none of them let on. This time, he turned his attention back to Daniel.

As though it was too much effort to hold it up, Daniel let his head drop forward. Jack held his breath, waiting for Daniel to tumble off the bed, to land sprawled on the concrete. Except for the slow rising and falling of his chest, Daniel could pass for a doll, set haphazardly on a giant child’s shelf.

He reanimated the moment the needle pricked his arm.

“Ow! What are you doing?” Daniel shoved against the nurse’s shoulder, dislodging the needle. She bumped into the rollaway table, the tray and its contents clattering to the ground. Giving her a fierce look, as though seeking to burn her with his eyes, Daniel slapped his hand over the wound. Tiny droplets of red seeped through his fingers, splashing down on his uniform and the bed.

“Daniel?” Sprinting from Carter’s bedside, Fraiser snagged some gauze from the table and worked it beneath Daniel’s fingers. “What happened?”

“She tried to take my arm off, is what happened.”

“I’m sorry, Doctor Jackson,” the nurse spluttered. She reached in to assist Fraiser but backed off when Daniel shot her another flinty look. Fraiser dismissed her with a slight nod.

Jack waved off the tape his nurse held over his arm. Instead, he pressed a gauze pad to his puncture and hopped off the bed, coming around to stand beside Fraiser. “Geez, Daniel, you’d think this was the first time you had blood drawn.”

“Well, I’ve never felt anything like that before. Maybe you should train your nurses better.”

“Lieutenant Fry is one of the most experienced staff members I have,” Fraiser returned with forced calm. One just did not diss her nurses. “She’s taken your blood on numerous occasions. You’ve never had a complaint before.”

Daniel’s expression remained belligerent. “If you say so. She made a ham-handed stab at it today.”

“Pun intended?” Jack pulled an impish grin, hoping to diffuse Daniel’s pique.

The frown fell from Daniel’s face, the mild joke doing the trick. He passed a shaky hand over his face. “I’m sorry, Janet. I think I’m just tired.”

“He’s been sneaking into his lab at night.”

Daniel’s hand fell to his lap, revealing a decidedly betrayed expression.

Giving Daniel’s arm a consoling pat, Janet turned to take a needle from the nurse who had done Jack’s blood draw, “There’s no reason to be upset with the colonel. He’s not telling me anything I don’t already know,” she said, while quickly and efficiently taking the sample from Daniel.

“What, you check the logs, too?”

“How else am I going to know when you defy my orders to rest? I’ve been letting you slide because I knew this meet and greet was important to you, but I think now I have to put my foot down. You are going home directly after the debriefing and you will stay there for forty eight hours.”

“That might not work, Doc,” Jack commented archly. “He’s got walls of books in that place. Maybe he should stay at my place so I can make sure he’s sleeping and not reading into the wee hours.”

“I’m perfectly capable of determining my own bedtime.”

Fraiser gave him dubious smirk. “All evidence to the contrary. I could make it a condition of your next trip through the Stargate.”  
  
“Fine,” Daniel spat, refusing to accept her terms gracefully. “I’ll go home with Jack. But, I swear if you so much as suggest tucking me in…”

Jack held up his hands in surrender. “I’ll behave. I promise.”

“Good.” Fraiser favored them both with a contented grin. “Let’s finish your exams and get you out of here.”

~oOo~

Showered and changed, a very brief debrief delivered, Jack quickly ushered Daniel out of the mountain. Much to Jack’s chagrin – but not to his surprise – Daniel had transferred the stone tablet from his back pack to his personal book bag. It had occurred to Jack to remind Daniel of the protocol which required that items brought from off world be quarantined for twenty-four hours, but Daniel would only pester him until he returned for it tomorrow. It just wasn’t worth the aggravation. Besides, it was a stone tablet. How much harm could it cause?

Bundling Daniel into his Avalanche, Jack was likewise not surprised when a soft rumbling emanated from Daniel’s side of the truck before they hit the last security checkpoint. Jack sneaked a peak at the first red light and grinned. Slouched against the window, his neck at an awkward angle, Daniel would likely not thank Jack for letting him fall asleep in the truck. Chances were, though, he’d be even less happy if Jack woke him up. Sleep it was. Jack had poked that bear too many times not to err on the side of least snarky result.

It never ceased to amaze Jack that Daniel could sleep, wherever, whenever the mood struck him. It had been approaching dusk by the time they reached the gate on planet Sumeria, but it was broad daylight here on Earth. The sun streamed through the passenger side window, bathing Daniel’s cheek in bright light and, if the reddening of his flesh was any indication, significant warmth.

With the right turn off the main road out of the mountain the sunlight came through the windshield. The air outside was chilly – interestingly, early fall in Colorado was Daniel’s favorite time of year, despite the drop in temperatures – but the solar heating was making the cab a bit toasty. Jack turned on the AC, and Daniel groaned softly and shrunk further into his down jacket.

Jack made a quick stop at the market, hard earned wisdom again dictating he not disturb Daniel to inquire what he’d like for dinner. Laying in supplies for the next few days, he trotted back to the truck, ruing the decision to leave his jacket behind when the wind began whipping discarded bags and grocery receipts around the parking lot. He found Daniel had shifted but apparently had not woken from his slumber.

Pulling into his driveway, he couldn’t put it off any longer. “Daniel, we’re here,” he announced, giving his friend’s arm a nudge.

Eyelids fluttering behind his glasses, Daniel sat up abruptly, eyes darting around as though he had no idea who Jack was or why he had brought him here.

“Come on, get your stuff inside. I’ll put away these groceries and start lunch.”

Daniel blinked, recognition returning. “Lunch?” he asked around a yawn. “What groceries?”

“The groceries I stopped and…never mind. Just go lie down in your room, and I’ll call you when it’s ready.”

“Yes mom,” Daniel snarked over his shoulder as he climbed out of the cab. Jack opened the back door for him and cranked up the thermostat before returning to the truck to retrieve the bags.  
  
Twenty minutes later, groceries packed away, Jack had soup and grilled cheese sandwiches ready to serve. A pot of coffee spluttered to a finish.

“Daniel,” he called down the hall. Not really expecting a response, still he gave Daniel a ten count before going to fetch him.

He turned into the doorway to Daniel’s room – technically Jack’s spare room – scowling to find no Daniel there. “Bathroom,” he deduced and strolled down the hall. The bathroom door was open, the room unoccupied.

Pausing in the hall to determine where to look next, Jack shivered, goose bumps rising on his arms as a cold draft skimmed his neck. It was then he noticed his bedroom door was ajar. He poked his head in.

“What the hell?” A large hole was open on the opposite side of his bedroom, the sliding glass door to the patio standing wide. A constant breeze fluttered the draperies and, as he watched, dislodged a handful of unclassified reports Jack had put on his night table for sleepless night reading. They scattered to the floor like large chunks of confetti.

Skirting his bed, Jack marched out onto the deck…and froze, nearly quite literally. It was late afternoon, the sun well past its zenith. Long shadows from the few trees that still tenaciously clung to their leaves shrouded the back deck, here and there a dazzling bit of sunlit warmth piercing the chill. In one of the largest spotlights, Daniel sat huddled in a deck chair, a short sleeved tee and jeans his only protection. Head back, he stared under his lashes across the lawn, the focus somewhere in the distance.

Jack wrapped his arms around himself and stomped across the deck. “What are you doing out here? It’s only like forty-five degrees. You hate the cold. Where’s your coat? Where are your shoes?”

Daniel turned his head, furrowed his brow, and looked at Jack as if he didn’t understand a word he’d said.

Okay, the rapid fire questioning was a bit unfair in Daniel’s current condition. Still, even dozy, Daniel usually lobbed at least one back to him. Jack bent over, peered into Daniel’s face. “Anybody home?”

A light went on behind his eyes, and Daniel smiled serenely. “I just needed some air.” He closed his eyes, basking in the sliver of sun that was threatened to wink out at any time. He trembled visibly.

“Well, come on, the air inside is heated…at least it will be as soon as we close that door.”

His brow creasing with another frown, Daniel pushed against the arms of the chair, hauled himself up. Jack stepped in, wrapped an arm around Daniel’s shoulders as he stood upright, scraping his palms over frigid skin.

He let Daniel go, ushering him ahead at the patio door, turned and pulled it shut behind him. “There’s coffee in the kitchen. You might stop by your room and get a pair of socks first. There’s a bunch of your stuff in that dresser.”

“‘K,” Daniel said noncommittally.

Jack locked the door, drew the curtains. He snagged a hoodie from the series of hooks behind his bedroom door on his way back to the kitchen. He grinned, finding Daniel face down in a mug of coffee.

The grin fled when Daniel set the cup down, his face pinched like someone had just suggested a game of catch with one of his artifacts.

“Something wrong?”

“This coffee tastes bitter.”

“Bitter? I made it the way I always make it, the way you like it, strong enough to stand your spoon in.”

Daniel sipped again. He gave the mug a sour, speculative look, pushed it aside.

Jack shook his head, and went to the stove, draping the hoodie over Daniel’s shoulder as he passed. He turned the flame up high; the soup sizzled almost immediately. “I’m going to have to reheat the soup. It won’t take long. The sandwiches should be okay. We’ll just dunk them.”

“That’s fine,” Daniel said, shimmying into the jacket.

“You didn’t get socks?”

Daniel’s toes curled under, as though shying away from Jack’s scrutiny. “My feet felt crowded. That’s why I took my shoes off in the first place.”

“Socks crowd your feet?” Jack asked incredulously. He set a bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich in front of Daniel.

“I just...” Daniel picked up the spoon he’d used for his coffee and began to stir the soup. “It doesn’t feel right, having my feet cocooned in so much heavy material.”

“Your feet feel cocooned,” Jack deadpanned, trying to make sense of the statement.

“I just don’t want to put on socks, okay?”

“Okay,” Jack conceded after a moment. This was a small battle in the scheme of things; just a skirmish really. The real heavy fighting would likely come when he announced Daniel’s bedtime.

Jack brought his own lunch to the table. They ate in companionable silence. Taking his dirty dishes to the sink, Jack asked over his shoulder, “What do you want to do tonight? We can probably find some nature show or something on TV.”

“Actually, I’d rather start on the book Tamzi gave me.”

“No.” Okay so the really bloody stuff would come earlier than he’d thought. “How about just for tonight, we relax, get ready for a good night’s sleep.”

“Reading does relax me.”

“Not this kind of reading. You’ll get lost in that ancient literature or history or whatever and the next thing we know, dawn is breaking but you haven’t in over twelve hours.”

Daniel was distinctly unhappy. Jack had nailed him and he knew it. “What if I promise to quit at midnight?”

Jack arched a brow, giving Daniel a look that said he knew exactly what he was up to.

“Eleven o’clock.” Two beats. “Ten?”

“How about we leave the book in your pack until the morning,” Jack said, his final offer, though he’d really had no intention of bargaining with Daniel on this issue. “Tonight we find something mindless to occupy us for a few hours, maybe have a few beers with dinner to relax then hit the sack early.”

“You’re not giving me a choice here, are you?”

“Hey! He really is a genius.”

Daniel’s scowl reshaped itself into a small patronizing smile. “Fine. But tomorrow I want the entire day to read.”

Jack took Daniel’s dishes from in front of him, tossed the half eaten sandwich and rinsed the remains of his soup down the drain. “Maybe. It depends on how well you sleep tonight.”

Jack groaned to himself. When had negotiating with Daniel become like dealing with a six year old? Oh, yeah, from the beginning since Daniel looked after his own welfare about as well as your average first grader. Witness the picked over lunch.

“Will it sway you if I agree to a nap in the middle of the day?” Daniel asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Balling the washcloth in his fist, Jack threw it down into the sink, the wet cloth impacting the porcelain with a satisfying slap. He whirled on Daniel. “Right now you’re working on going to bed with no supper!”

Daniel’s eyes widened, two huge blue pools…complete with water. Tears brimmed, threatening to spill over. Quickly lowering his gaze, Daniel pushed away from the table with such force he nearly toppled his chair.

“I’ll go see what’s on the television,” he muttered into his chest and fled the room.

Jack gaped after him. _That was…odd_. He and Daniel had had fights over the years – too many to count. They had made each other angry enough to stop talking for a few days, even angry enough to nearly come to blows…but never, in the five years he’d known Daniel, had he ever made him cry. Well, there might have been that one time when he told Daniel their friendship had been a sham. But this wasn’t anything like that.

“He must be more tired than he let on,” was the only explanation Jack could come up with.

He finished the dishes and crept to the top of the stairs leading into the living room. Hunkered down in the big comfy upholstered chair – Jack’s chair – his legs extended before him, Daniel absently clicked through the channels. He paused briefly, and Jack peered around the door jamb. Penguins leapt onto and skidded around on an ice flow somewhere in an unknown ocean.

“Can’t get much more mindless than penguins,” he said, giving Daniel a smile that hovered in the vicinity of apology. Descending the stairs, he climbed over Daniel’s legs to the less comfortable chair.

“I’m sorry I upset you,” he said as his ass hit the cushion.

Daniel gave him a curious look. “What do you mean? I’m not upset.”

“You’re not upset. You just ran out of the room with tears in your eyes, and you’re not upset?”

Daniel looked at him as though he’d just announced he wanted to run for Miss America. Jack could really grow to hate that look.

“Tears?” Daniel scoffed. “What, like crying?”

“Well, not sobbing, but yeah, your eyes were definitely wet.”

A chuckle bubbled up from deep in Daniel’s chest. “Good one, Jack,” he chortled, shaking his head. “Crying.”

It was Jack’s turn to wonder if his friend has lost his mind. It occurred to him to press the issue, but to what purpose? If Daniel wanted to play the whole thing off as a joke to save face, Jack had no problem giving Daniel that victory.

“You got me,” he finally said, forcing a laugh that matched Daniel’s. He turned to the television, wanting to put the argument behind them. “You happy with penguins?”

“Yeah.” Daniel set the remote on the table between them, shifted to his hip and folded his long legs into the chair beside him, settling in for a long session of TV watching. “I like penguins.”

Face forward, Jack cast his gaze to the side occasionally, watching Daniel.

~oOo~

Keenly aware of Jack’s scrutiny, Daniel kept his eyes glued to the TV. A group of penguins tottered across the frozen tundra like so many two-year-olds. Ordinarily, Daniel would have found relaxation in their antics. Today, they barely registered through his distraction.

 _What the hell just happened?_ His mind raced over the events of the past half hour. _Crying? I was crying, or damn near. Thank you, Jack for being a good enough friend to let me lie through my teeth, though I doubt you were really convinced._ He glanced at Jack, thankful his attention was currently on the penguins.

 _So, crying. Okay, it happened, but why?_ He worked the puzzle of his behavior like someone new to macramé might worry a troublesome knot. _What Jack said was particularly hurtful; but I kinda deserved it. Yeah, he’s been a mother-hen on steroids since he found me in the library, but he’s not been totally unreasonable. And he is following Janet’s direction._

_I was never going to give in easily, and Jack knew that. We’ve had these debates before; we both appreciate getting as much as we give. But that remark about the nap? I purposefully goaded him out there._

_Which brings me back to the crying._ Daniel reflected on the moment he felt the burning at the back of his eyes, the clench in his throat. _Nope, still have no idea where it came from. It was like I couldn’t control it._

A hearty laugh jolted him out of his reverie, and Daniel’s consciousness resolved on a scene of a dozen or so penguins on their bellies propelling themselves across the ice with their webbed feet. He looked over to find Jack slouched back, making the best of a less than ideal fit in the occasional chair, his arms draped loosely over the chair’s exposed wood arms. He grinned like an idiot, his upper body jerking occasionally with silent paroxysms of mirth.

Daniel smiled reflexively, even as Jack turned to him and admonished, “Quit your cogitatin’. It’s disrespectful to the penguins.”

Busted.

Ducking his head, Daniel nodded in agreement. Thankful that Jack always had his six, he turned his attention to the parade of penguins marching across the television screen.

~oOo~

Jack squeezed his eyes against the beam of sunlight rapping against his eyelids.

“Damn sun,” he muttered. “How does it always find a way to slip past the drapes?” He turned away from the light, throwing an arm over his head.

It took a three count for him to realize the significant of the too bright wake up call. Morning.

He sat up, ear trained to the hallway for any sign that Daniel was awake. He checked the clock on his bedside table. 0800. That couldn’t be right. They’d gone to bed at ten. He hadn’t slept ten hours since high school.

Tossing off the covers, he hissed a breath. Damn it was chilly this morning. He pulled a pair of sweats on over his boxers, and slid into a hoodie, zipping it over his tee shirt. Unlike Daniel, his feet appreciated a swathing of socks and Jack was happy to accommodate them. He stepped into his slippers and opened his bedroom door.

No sound emanated from the kitchen or living room, no aroma of coffee tickled his nose.

“Looks like Daniel slept in, too.” If Daniel had gotten up to read – though Jack had gotten him to promise he wouldn’t – then he surely would have made coffee. Daniel was nothing if not a creature of habit. Not to mention a coffee addict.

Daniel’s door was closed. Never daring to wake a sleeping archaeologist without a huge mug of coffee as a peace offering, Jack padded to the kitchen and put on a pot. A family of cardinals chirped madly outside the kitchen window.

_Probably telling me I need to fill the back yard feeders._

He made his way to the living room to open the drapes to the morning. He got one side open before a sight too unbelievable to…well, to believe met him. Birds were not the only creatures stirring in the back yard.

On the other side of the lawn, kneeling on grass damp with frost, Daniel bent at the waist and put his nose to the ground. Even from this distance Jack noted toes poking out from the bottoms of Daniel’s sweats. His sweat shirt was nowhere in sight. At some other time, Jack might have enjoyed the spectacle of a bare-footed, bare-chested Daniel cavorting in his back yard, but not his morning. He glanced at the thermometer attached to the outside window sill: 36 degrees.

With a growl, Jack pulled his hoodie close about him and threw open the French door. By the time he reached Daniel, his archaeologist had shifted onto his back side, his back against a tree.

“Are you trying to get me in trouble with Fraiser?”

Daniel tilted his head back, and smiled. A Stepford Wife kinda smile, Jack noted.

“Morning, Jack. Did you sleep okay?”

“I slept just fine, Daniel, thank you for asking. So well, in fact, I was still a bit drowsy when I got out of bed. That is until I got a gander at my best friend sitting half naked in my back yard, in near freezing temperatures, sniffing the grass!”

Unperturbed by the increasing volumes of Jack’s statement, Daniel shrugged and pushed himself to his feet. He began to finger the few leaves still on the tree’s branches.  
  
“You know Lotan described the design of leaves as fascinating. He was right.”

“How nice for him. Can we go inside now?”

“I’d rather stay out a bit longer if you don’t mind.”

“I do mind.” Against his better judgment – it would likely involve contact with those finely sculpted shoulders – Jack stripped out of his jacket and threw it over Daniel’s back. “Fraiser will have my head if you get pneumonia on my watch.”

“It wouldn’t be your fault though. I’m the one who chose this morning to attune myself to the natural world.”

“Is that what this is? The bare feet, the…” Jack waved a hand in the vicinity of Daniel’s bare chest. “Exposing yourself to the elements.”

“Exactly! It’s something Tamzi said. I’m making contact with nature, sharing some of its energy.”

“What for?”

“The ancient Mesopotamians believed that everything in nature is sacred, all things are imbued with a divine Spirit. There is no difference between the natural and the supernatural; this is why their religion has so many magical elements.”

“Well, that’s all well and good,” Jack tried reasonably, “but, aside from the fact we’re not ancient Mesopotamians, is it really necessary to do this while there’s frost on the ground? Can it wait until later in the day? After lunch, maybe?”

Daniel considered the proposal a moment. “I guess. Tamzi didn’t say any time was better than another.”

“Halleluia!” It was all Jack could do to keep from sprinting for the door. “Let’s go in and get some breakfast, and when it’s warmer, we’ll come back outside.” He ushered Daniel forward with a slight shove.

“You want to meditate with me?”

“No, I thought I’d rake leaves. Revel in my fascination. Unless you’d like to roll around in them instead.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Daniel said and he jogged away leaving Jack to wonder if he was serious.

“You know your sinuses won’t thank you!” he called, compelled to get the last word.

Back inside the house, Jack took back the jacket Daniel handed to him. “You want to shower first?” he asked. He might have thought he was sly, finding a way to get Daniel under the hot spray without giving him a direct order to go warm himself up. But Daniel’s placid grin and slight nod suggested his friend knew exactly what he was doing.

Trying very hard not to think about the naked man in his guest bathroom, Jack started breakfast. In his haste to get his groceries and get back to his sleeping friend, Jack had forgotten Daniel’s preference for waffles, so they’d have to make due with bacon and eggs.

He’d bought fresh fruit at the store – something Daniel rarely got for himself. Once the bacon began to sizzle, he pulled apples, fresh pineapple, a melon and strawberries out of the crisper, and chopped them for a fruit salad.

The fruit bathed his hands and the countertop with their juices, and Jack sopped up the mess with a kitchen towel. Scowling at the sensation his fingers were stuck together, he walked the towel down the hall, intending to deposit it in the laundry room hamper. Midway there, he was waylaid from his mission by a very damp and steamy archaeologist – clothed only in Egyptian cotton.  
He held his jeans draped over his arm like a waiter at a fancy restaurant might drape a cloth.

“Holy shit.” Jack’s mouth went bone dry and he was suddenly concerned his tongue was lolling out of his mouth like one of those cartoon wolves ogling a pretty girl.

“Sorry,” Daniel shrugged. “I forgot to get clean underwear. I thought for a moment about just going commando, but…it’s just a few steps down the hall.” Clasping the towel a bit tighter, he scurried by Jack, who just resisted the urge to plaster himself against the wall in a panic as Daniel brushed past.

Jack mopped sweat off his brow with the dish towel, relieved when the bedroom door closed off his view of Daniel’s towel-swathed ass.

_Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all._

Not that Jack hadn’t seen Daniel in a towel before; they shared the communal showers on base. But that was different, it was safe. Guys naturally kept their eyes above shoulder level. Besides, there were other people – hundreds of them – just outside the locker room door any one of whom could appear at any time.

Right now it was just the two of them. And, suddenly, Daniel was traipsing his hallway, all but naked.

Jack watched the closed door with trepidation. It took a moment before he was able to scrape himself off the wall and stumble back to the kitchen. It wasn’t until he got there that he realized the towel he was taking to the laundry room was still clutched in his shaking hand. And his hair was adhered to his forehead by a combination of sweat and fruit juice.

“Come on, O’Neill, get it together,” he pep-talked. “The last thing you need is Daniel getting all touchy-feely concerned when he figures out something is wrong.” He dabbed his face with the towel again and tossed it in the corner of the counter to be dealt with later.

He was getting eggs out of the fridge when Daniel, wet and far too inviting, slunk around the corner and shimmied onto a stool at the bar. Jack quickly shut the refrigerator door for fear the heat building in his groin would spoil everything in there.

“So.” Jack cleared his throat of an alarming squeak. “You slept well?”

“Yeah.” Daniel’s smile was easy, natural. It had been a while since Jack had seen him this relaxed. “I had some interesting dreams, though.”

“Interesting? How so?”

“Um, you know.” Daniel lowered his gaze, began picking at his fingernails. “Just off world kinda stuff.”

The fidgeting had Jack curious, but clearly Daniel was not interested in divulging details. “I’m just thankful for no nightmares.”

“Me, too,” Daniel agreed. “You sleep okay?”

“You sleep, I sleep.” That was the usual deal when Daniel stayed over. Jack’s most restful nights were those when Daniel found rest.

“Good.” Daniel smiled again, genuinely pleased. “You’re making breakfast?”

“Bacon and eggs if that’s okay. I didn’t think to pick up waffle mix when I stopped yesterday.”

“That’s fine.” Daniel leaned down, hefted his book bag to his lap. Jack hadn’t even noticed he had it on him earlier. “Is it okay if I unwrap this here?” Daniel asked, wresting out the stone tablet.

Jack considered telling Daniel to wait until after they ate, but his friend was in such a good mood, he hated to break the spell. Instead he pulled a clean dish towel out of a drawer. “Try not to scratch my countertop with that thing,” he said as he spread the towel in front of Daniel.

“Sorry.” Daniel laid the tablet on the towel and began unwrapping it.

“I made coffee,” Jack aimed a finger at the coffeemaker.

“No, thanks.”

Jack turned and hit Daniel with a look of mock suspicion. “All right, who are you and what have you done with Daniel Jackson?”

“What?” Daniel countered, annoyed. “I’m not allowed to decline coffee? I just don’t feel like coffee this morning. Is that okay?”

“Sure. Sorry. You want juice instead?”

“Yes. Thank you.” As Jack turned away, Daniel plunged a hand into his bag, working out a legal pad and a handful of pencils. He laid them out on the counter and dropped the bag back onto the floor. Sliding the tablet closer, he peered intently at the first character.

“Don’t get too engrossed just yet,” Jack warned. “Breakfast is almost ready. Why don’t you move to the table?”

Daniel tossed him a mild glare over his glasses, closed the bubble wrap over the tablet again, and moved to his customary place at the kitchen table. A glass of orange juice and a bowl of fruit was already waiting for him. Jack soon followed with two plates filled with bacon, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes and toast. He set one down in front of Daniel, the other at the seat opposite.

“You want jelly?”

“Mango habanera, if you have it.”

“If I have it. How long have you been spending the night with me?”

In the process of sipping his juice, Daniel coughed. Sticky fluid bubbled up from the glass, running down his chin and onto the table.

“You all right?” Jack tossed him the dish towel he’d slung over his shoulder while cooking. “You would never have wasted coffee like that.” He made a calming gesture when Daniel once again gave him the evil eye. “I’m just saying.”

He turned to get the jelly as Daniel forked a bit of food from his plate.

“This is really good,” Daniel announced with more enthusiasm than the dish warranted. He shoveled in a huge forkful. “What did you do to the eggs?”

“Scrambled them?” Jack took the lid off the jelly and set it down next to Daniel before starting on his own breakfast. “I’m not quite awake enough to perform the Heimlich maneuver,” he felt compelled to warn when Daniel shoved half a piece of toast into his mouth. “Slow down and chew, will ya?”

“It’s just so good,” Daniel mumbled around the mouthful.

“You know if you ate regular meals, this wouldn’t be such a novelty to you.”

Daniel paused in his chewing to consider the remark, shrugged and slathered the other half of his toast with jelly. He lapped a bit of jelly from his finger. His eyes rolled back and for a second, Jack though he was going to faint.

“Oh my god, that is sooo good.” Daniel folded the toast lengthwise and worked the whole thing into his mouth.

“Okay,” Jack said. “What’s going on? Usually I have to nag you to eat, but right now I’m tempted to snatch your plate away before you choke on the bacon.”

Cheeks full as a squirrel’s in autumn, Daniel chewed quickly and forced down the mouthful.  
He swiped his forearm over his lips. “I don’t know why, it’s just all so–”

“Good,” Jack finished for him. “Yeah, I got that, and I really do appreciate that my cooking has you so delirious, but do me a favor, huh? Take smaller bites and chew. Believe me you’ll enjoy it that much more.”

“You’re right.” Daniel picked up a slice of bacon, nibbled at it. The resulting moan had Jack squirming in his seat, the throaty expression of pleasure going from Jack’s ears straight to his groin.

“Good?” he choked out. As nonchalantly as he could manage, he dragged his napkin from the table into his lap, covering the bulge in his sweats.

_Maybe I should just let Daniel bolt his food. Dragging this out is like slow torture._

Daniel picked up his juice glass, sipped. He slowly skimmed his tongue over his bottom lip to collect the residue.

Jack groaned internally. Tearing his gaze from that luscious mouth, he fixed his attention on his plate. Ironically, he’d eaten little of his food. He speared a bit of egg, put it in his mouth and forced himself to chew. It might as well have been cardboard for all he tasted.

Polishing off the bacon, Daniel went for the fruit. He slammed his napkin against his chin as juices escaped his mouth. “You know I don’t usually like melon, but there’s something positively sinful in the sweetness of this one.” He speared a strawberry, laid it on his tongue, closed his lips around it, and slowly pressed it between his teeth. A sound Jack had never heard in his kitchen before – well, okay once when Sara was feeling adventurous – emanated from somewhere in the vicinity of Daniel’s throat. The apples and pineapple were met with similar sounds of rapture until Jack felt he might just have to recreate Sara’s fantasy here with Daniel.

Finally, mercifully, Daniel finished his breakfast. He studied his empty plate like he was trying to decide whether to pick it up and lick it.

Self-preservation had Jack on his feet removing the temptation. He didn’t think he would survive that spectacle.

“You want another glass of juice?” It was a risky proposition given that Daniel suddenly had a propensity to lathe his mouth after each sip, but he was a guest after all.

“No, thanks, I’m just gonna get started on my translation if you don’t mind.” He moved back to the counter.

“I don’t mind.” Jack took the rest of the breakfast dishes to the sink. His eye caught the towel he’d chucked onto the counter earlier. He grabbed it and snagged the towel he’d given Daniel earlier when he spilled his juice.

“I’m gonna start a load of laundry,” he said on his way out of the room. He paused at the doorway. “Now that I think about it, I’m not sure I changed the sheets on your bed the last time you stayed. I’ll go ahead and grab those.”

As if someone had electrified the stool, Daniel leapt from it, his trajectory taking him past Jack and into the hallway. Jack staggered backward to avoid being run down.

“I got it!” Daniel hollered over his shoulder, racing to his room.

By the time Jack shook himself out of his surprise and gathered the rest of the load, Daniel had stripped his bed and already stuffed the sheets into the washer. He was turning it on as Jack approached.

“Don’t want to be a burden,” Daniel said. “No reason you should have to clean up after me.”

Ducking his head from the quizzical look Jack gave him, Daniel turned tail and all but ran back to the kitchen.

~oOo~

Under the guise of reviewing the ancient tablet, Daniel watched Jack at the sink washing the breakfast dishes. He scrubbed a hand over his face.

_Damn, that was close. I supposed I could have fessed up that those dreams I had last night were more than interesting; they were erotic. Jack wouldn’t have said anything about the creamy mess I made of the sheets. He’s a guy, he understands. I just don’t know I could have trusted myself not to spill my guts when he looked me in the eye right then._

_I was dreaming about Jack._

_At least I think it was Jack, the man who came to me had the same general build. Okay, he was faceless, but who else could it have been? I’m not prone to wet dreams over just anyone. Besides, there was a sense of urgency in his lovemaking, as though he feared we’d be discovered. That concern would certainly be foremost in Jack’s mind…in the unlikely event he’d ever even consider taking me to bed._

Daniel closed his eyes, his mind going back to Jack’s innocent comment earlier this morning, the one that had him spewing orange juice all over himself.

_Spend the night with you? Really, Jack?_

_If only._

_This is not helpful_ , Daniel berated himself, purposefully veering from the maudlin path his mind was wandering. A headache started to blossom at his temples and Daniel knew he wouldn’t be able to forego caffeine for much longer and still concentrate on his work. But, for some very strange reason, he seemed unable to stomach the taste of coffee. Hopefully Jack had some of that strong Irish tea left from last winter.

Breakfast was much more palatable. Much. Every flavor was intensified; every texture enhanced as if he hadn’t tasted food in decades. That jelly was some of the best stuff he’d ever eaten and the bacon…well, the bacon was damn near orgasmic.

Maybe Jack was right, he did need to eat good food more often.

With a sigh, Daniel retuned his attention to the tablet. The characters appeared fuzzy and Daniel noted with mortification that the tablet was still covered in bubble wrap. He glanced at Jack, who, thankfully, didn’t seem to have noticed. Daniel’s subterfuge hadn’t been in vain.

Removing the wrap and setting it aside, Daniel followed a strong urge to caress the crystals. They were still. Too still. Hadn’t there been some sort of energy pulsing through them yesterday? He flattened his palm against them. Nothing. No current, no hum, not the least bit of warmth. The crystals felt cold, dead.

_Is it just the fact they’ve been removed from their native environment or could they have been damaged by the wormhole?_

Daniel fervently hoped it was the former. He would be heartbroken to return Tamzi’s gift in less than pristine condition.

With no way to immediately remedy the situation, Daniel turned the tablet over, carefully nestling the crystals against the towel. He pulled his pad toward him and copied the first section of cuneiform, translating in his head.

**_Had I a million years to live, I would not live a single moment without you. Let others wish for power or knowledge. I wish only that I may hold you, that I may love you for the remainder of these lives. My heart flutters hastily when I think of my love of you; it lets me not act sensibly. I know that your duty is to your god, but I despair sometimes that I will perish before I am with you again. Each look with which you look at me sustains me more than food and drink._ **

Daniel pulled a shaky sigh. That was as far as he’d gotten before falling asleep in the library. The passage had not lost its impact even on a repeat reading. Unending devotion was woven through every word. What must it be like to be loved like that?

He sighed again. The only way to find out was to keep reading. It was a sure bet Jack wasn’t going to declare his undying love for Daniel any time soon.

He scanned the passage again. That was Ashnan, he guessed. Tamzi had said Utu was a priest. He hadn’t given Ashnan an occupation but based on this letter, he could be a poet. “I wonder if Utu is as romantic.”

**_I will joyfully return that embrace, my love, whether for all our lives or only for the hour we can escape the judgment of those who seek to tear us apart, who seek to destroy the joy we have found in one another._ **

Apparently, Utu was a man of few words. He’d said enough, though. Tamzi was right; their love was forbidden.

**Our time together is stolen, a risk we take to love. Yet I cannot do otherwise, for that is surely death. You are my heart; were you to be separated from me I would cease to exist. I am yours as a tree is the earth’s; I could not live apart from you.**

Poor Ashnan, so in love with someone he couldn’t even spend time with. At least, Daniel got to see Jack.

**_You are likewise my heart, no decree otherwise can alter that. We cannot appeal to the Enu for relief. His edict is based not on necessity, as he claims, but on spite. He harbors desires he is blocked from acting upon with one who is his underling; I will ever give him what he desires. The only way he sees to avenge himself is to ban us from sharing what he is denied._ **

Oh.

“Hey!”

Daniel flinched, jolted out of his reading by the volume of Jack’s hail as well as the knuckles rapping the counter near his hand. He came out of his shocked fugue to find Jack staring at him.

“I said I’m going to rake leaves. It’s turned into a nice day. You want to take this out to the patio?”

“What time is it?”

“I don’t know, around eleven, I think. You’ve been at this for a couple of hours now.”

Daniel blinked, gaped at Jack as if he’d just discovered him standing there. Two hours? It would take him time to rewrite the translation, of course but it certainly didn’t feel like that much time had gone by.

He’d been knocked off his feet by Utu’s revelation. Fortunately, Daniel was frequently so engrossed in his reading, Jack didn’t notice anything amiss.

“Come on,” Jack said. He slid the tablet towards him, covered it with the edge of the towel before picking it up. “I’ll help you with this stuff. Go put on shoes. You might need a jacket, too.”

Daniel watched Jack scoop up the pad as well and carry the lot out onto the back patio. Slipping his glasses down his nose, he rubbed his eyes, pushed off the counter and trudged back to his room for his loafers and a sweater.

By the time he got outside, Jack was already under the large oak tree with his rake. He’d set the stone tablet on top of Daniel’s legal pad on the picnic table. Daniel stretched and settled onto the bench in front of them. Sliding his pad free, he perused his translation to this point.

Had he read that correctly? The Enu lusted after Utu. And he instituted a ban on homosexuality to keep him from continuing his relationship with Ashnan. A relationship which they will not – cannot – give up. Wait, didn’t someone mention something about risk?

Daniel flipped through his notes. Yes: risk, judgment, destroy. And spite. Would the Enu really harm them for loving each other?

Daniel reached in desperation for the tablet, snagged the towel and dragged it to him. He quickly found the place he’d left off and began reading.

**_Your duty is to the god not the Enu. Enlil will honor your devotion to his people. Your appeals on their behalf, your attentiveness to the god’s shrine, your tireless work creating medicines and weaving spells to assist those who have fallen ill – these things are your calling. Enlil would not require you to submit to the will of the Enu. Your fate is to care for those who suffer during this time of famine, to care for those who suffer from their lack of sustenance._ **

Right. Tamzi mentioned a famine.

**_I am a priest of Enlil; my duty to him is foremost. Especially during this trying time for his people. My duties at the temple are at an end for now. I am free to study once again. All that has carried me through the heartache I witness daily is the hope of seeing you again. I will be in the archives after darkness._ **

Daniel smiled, the invitation setting off a strange spark of joy within him, as though he was the one being reunited with a loved one.

**_I love you all the more that you put your duty to our people before your devotion to me, though I do not doubt you love me enough to walk away if I asked it of you. Fear not; I would never do so. Were it not for your dedication many more of our people would perish. I am proud of your service to our people. I am even more proud that you love me, and I anxiously anticipate our reunion. I will be waiting in the usual place._ **

Daniel’s heart skipped a beat. He lifted his hand from the tablet, settled it against his chest. The love of these two men was nearly palpable, the feeling stronger with each line of their story. They understood each other so well. It was a testament to their union that they could go about the hectic business of their daily lives, secure in the knowledge that they would always find rest in each other when it was done.

His eyes sought Jack, hard at work clearing the debris out of one of his many flower beds. Though Daniel wished for more, he had that same assurance in his friendship with Jack. Jack paused in his labors, smiled and lifted a gloved hand. Daniel’s heart fluttered again, and he returned the gesture before going back to his work.

The next sentence had his heart hammering against his chest.

**_Eshtar has asked why I spend all my time in the archive. I fear he is spying for the Enu; no one has ever taken an interest in my comings and goings. I believe I have convinced him it is only my unquenchable thirst for knowledge that brings me there, but we must now be more circumspect. It would mean death if they knew that I have brought you there, that we have shared our love beneath the temple. I would not endanger you further. If you wish to suspend our trysts, I will honor that decision. As for me, I would gladly suffer that fate for even one more moment together._ **

Daniel quickly skimmed to the next section. He could not breathe until he knew Ashnan’s response.

**_In this, as in most things, we are of like mind. I have said that without you in it, my life is nothing. I will stand by that sentiment even in the face of Enlil himself. I do not fear the Enu or the threat of death. I fear only being forced to go on alone._ **

Daniel heaved a weighty sigh. Of course Ashnan would decline Utu’s attempt to protect him. A sense of pride permeated Daniel’s being, his chest swelling with the feeling. But beneath it was a niggling grain of dread. Had the lovers just sealed their doom?

As Daniel turned back to the tablet, dread swiftly overwhelmed pride, a sick heaviness assaulting his stomach as he read.

**_My love, it has been far too long since I last heard from you, and my heart aches more and more with each passing moment that you are away from me. Has the Enu caught up with you?_ **

Ashnan again. To this point the letters had alternating between them. What had happened to Utu? Had he been detained by Enu as Ashnan feared?

Shoving the legal pad aside, Daniel swept the next section of the tablet for an answer. He gasped, dismayed to find the narrative had changed. The story was no longer the missives of the lovers, but a sort of recap penned by another.

**_‘It shall be illegal for any priest or initiate of the god to have relations with another man. This is the edict set down by Ishtaran, great priest of–’_ **

“No!” Daniel cried out as the tablet slid from beneath his sight. He grasped at the towel as it moved away.

“Time for lunch,” Jack decreed. Swaddling the tablet, he lifted it and tucked it under his arm.

Daniel surged to his feet, reached for the tablet. “I was right in the middle of a critical section.”

“Uh, uh. You agreed, remember? You’re supposed to rest.”

“Not now, Jack!” He slid from the bench, skirted the table, clutching at Jack’s shirt. He had to get back to the translation, had to know what happened.

“I said ‘no’.” Jack caught Daniel’s wrist, twisted the hand out of the material of his shirt. He shoved him away. “Look at yourself! This is why you need a break.”

Stumbling back a pace, Daniel glared at Jack. His brow was drawn, but Daniel recognized the subtle difference between anger and worry. Jack’s mouth, a severe slash cutting across the bottom half of his face, slowly softened, the lips protracting in a moue of concern. Shoulders tensed defensively, sagged as though they carried the weight of the world.

Suddenly, Daniel was very aware of how Jack saw him. Sweat dotted his brow, the eyes beneath wide and wild. Daniel flinched, blinking away a droplet that slid into the corner of his eye. His breathing, detectable just over the pounding of his heart, rasped at a rapid rate. At his sides, his hands were knotted, ready to battle for possession of the tablet. His shoulders ached with the bunching of muscles, his feet anchored to stand his ground.

Daniel let it all go with a moaning whoosh of breath. It was all he could do to stay on his feet.

Jack nodded, approving. “Now, come on. I’m putting this up, and I’m thinking you don’t need to do any more reading today.” He walked past Daniel, towards the house.

“Jack.” Had that sounded as desperate to Jack as it has to him? Apparently not.

Jack whirled on him. “Do you want me to call Fraiser for a second opinion? Because I’m pretty confident she’s going to take my side here.” He watched Daniel for a moment and seeing no argument was forthcoming, he turned and headed into the house.

His eyes fixed on the tablet secured beneath Jack’s elbow, Daniel watched him go. A debilitating ache of loss blossomed in his chest, and Daniel fell-sat on the bench. The reaction was extreme, he knew, but he was powerless to suppress it. He laid his upper body on the table, rested his forehead on his hands, and sobbed until the pain went away.

~oOo~

Jack carried the tablet all the way through the house to his bedroom. He slipped it beneath his pillows, knowing full well Daniel would eventually discover it there.

He scraped a hand through the hair that had begun going prematurely grey shortly after he’d brought Daniel back from Abydos. Even before then, Jack had worried about the geeky archaeologist, certain he wasn’t equipped to survive the wilds of a foreign desert planet. But Daniel had surprised him; he’d not only survived, he’d thrived, strong to the point of resilience even in the face of the most unbearable loss.

Closing his eyes, Jack remembered that skinny, wheezy kid with fondness. In his mind’s eye, the kid grew, his stature enhanced by the trials he’d faced, as well as the successes they’d celebrated (“Spacemonkey! Yeah!”), until he’d become the Daniel Jack knew now. Knew…and loved, his heart appended.

The reminder jostled him out of his memories. Swiping a hand over his face, he left the bedroom, closing the door behind him. He still had to collect Daniel; chances were his friend was pacing the yard, working off his indignation at Jack’s refusal to let him continue working.

Jack pulled up short as he approached the large window overlooking the deck. Half sprawled on the picnic table, Daniel lay immobile. Heart in his throat, Jack watched for a second to confirm the rhythmic expanding of Daniel’s ribs before he hurried outside to rescue him from the chill.

He clasped a shoulder, the warmth comforting beneath his palm, shook gently. Daniel’s head came up, his eyes glassy and vacant. Jack found the look of confusion adorable.

“Come on,” he prompted. “You’ll sleep better in your bed.”

Blinking slowly, Daniel reached towards his abandoned legal pad and pen. Sweeping them into his arms, heedless of the rumpling of paper, he stood shakily. Jack wrapped an arm around Daniel’s back and steered him into the house. Midway down the hall, Daniel faltered. Jack pulled him upright, held him closer, smiling to himself when Daniel rested his head on Jack’s shoulder.

Finally, they made it to the bedroom. Jack wrested the paper from his embrace and lowered his friend to the bed. Daniel lay back, as Jack tugged off his shoes. He rolled over, pulled his knees toward his chest, seemingly asleep the moment he settled. Jack unfolded the quilt at the bottom of the bed, and draped it over him. Resisting the urge to press a kiss to Daniel’s forehead, Jack slipped the glasses from his face, set them on the nightstand with the legal pad, and went out in search of lunch.

~oOo~

Automatic gunfire split the air, set his ears to ringing. Still it did not drown out the clacking, hissing chatter of the Replicators. Daniel sighted the nearest bug, squeezed the trigger of his P-90, countless hours of weapons training taking over. The bullets ripped through the Replicator, dashed it to pieces.

Still they came.

As they’d practiced in drills, Daniel turned, ducked behind Sam and Jack, retreating down the hallway in stages. They took their turns, smashing three or four bugs to bits, before scampering down the hallway past Daniel.

He hefted his P-90 again, arms more used to toting books than rifles bulked with the strain. He took aim, fired. One Replicator split in two. A second launched itself at him from the wall opposite. Daniel turned his head away, doubled over, praying the thing would sail above him instead. From the corner of his eye he saw Sam raise her P-90, barrel trained on the bug. He breathed a relieved sigh, thankful for the backup.

The P-90 sounded, the recoil jerking Sam back a pace. Behind the flare of the bullets’ exit, Daniel noted her eyes grow large, her mouth drop open in a scream.

Pain seared his back, mechanical feet like grappling hooks, penetrating his flesh. The bug’s size and momentum carried it forward, its hold on Daniel bringing him down. He fell heavily on his hip, his breath knocked from him. Desperately, he swatted at the Replicator, his P-90 laying uselessly beside him. He turned, called to Sam and Jack. The hail became a cry of despair as he searched the hallway with fear-filled eyes. His teammates were nowhere to be found; he was alone.

Others joined the Replicator who had taken him out, their spiky limbs piercing him, anchoring him to the floor of the ship. Oddly, there was no blood, but Daniel felt as though they would tear him apart. _This pain alone should kill me_ , he thought. But he knew there was more to come.

A replicator, large as his torso, moved above him, its metal carapace glimmering in the harsh light of the hallway. Daniel closed his eyes, waited for the end.

But the end did not come. Dimly, he became aware of a change in the sensations echoing across his body. There was pressure but no pain. Near death had not changed his penchant for curiosity, so Daniel opened his eyes. He gaped at the sight that met them.

He was surrounded by a dozen men, each laying hands on him, holding him down. He glanced around. The men were on their feet, their backs barely bent as they put pressure on him. Guessing he was on a raised platform, Daniel scraped fingertips across the surface on which he lay. Stone. An altar?

A light flared above him, drawing his attention away from his explorations.

Suddenly, Daniel stood behind the men. He pushed himself to his toes, gazed over their shoulders. A young man, skin bronzed from the sun, dark hair pulled back from his face, lay where Daniel had been moments before. His eyes wild, he struggled against the men, who leaned more heavily against him.

The youth turned his head, looked directly at Daniel. “You can save us,” he said, his voice pleading.

“Us?” Daniel echoed, looking around for another victim.

“You can save us,” the boy said again, his struggles continuing, “You and your heart mate. Only you can rescue us from this fate.”

Daniel spun back towards the voice, stunned to find himself once again on the altar, immobile.

The light blazed above him again, and Daniel knew fear greater than anything he’d ever felt before.

A shout frozen in his throat, Daniel surged upright, pushing against the restraint. He gasped for breath, swallowed hard and looked wildly around.

The men were gone. As was the altar. He was in his bed in Jack’s guestroom. Muted light spilled in between drawn curtains, painting a line on the floor that reflected softly from the hard wood. The clock radio on the bedside table contributed to the illumination, its red display also supplying the time: 3:20.

A.M. Daniel surmised as the light coming in through the windows was street light not sunlight.

He shivered, only then realizing his clothing was damp. He pinched the front of his tee shirt between finger and thumb, pulled it away from his chest. A bead of sweat wormed its lazy way from behind his ear, gliding along the tensed tendon of his neck. Pausing briefly on his collar bone, it slid over, brushing his nipple as it travelled down his chest. Daniel shivered, again.

Dragging the quilt back up onto the bed – the quilt he’d shoved off him thinking it was hands – he reclined back into the pillows. He didn’t remember going to bed. That and the fact he was still wearing his jeans, told him he’d fallen asleep elsewhere, and Jack had tucked him in.

Jack.

A sudden frisson of terror curled through his stomach, prompting Daniel to throw back the covers and leap from the bed. With no clear idea why, he raced out the door and down the hall to Jack’s room.

~oOo~

Jack startled awake. Something was off. His years in special ops had taught him the art of catching sleep in enemy territory, aware enough of his surroundings to detect threats before they became deadly.

Without lifting his head from his pillow, he peered toward the door of his bedroom. It was open. And someone was standing there, silhouetted against the nightlight he’d left burning in the bathroom for Daniel.

Daniel. “Daniel?”

There was no reply. Jack pushed himself upright, canted his head to see around the shade of the lamp on his bedside table. Daniel stood in the doorway, facing him, and though Jack could not see his face, his body language spoke volumes. Daniel leaned against the doorjamb, so heavily it looked to Jack as if it was the only thing holding him up. Daniel’s arms were wrapped tightly across his body.

“Daniel? Something wrong?”

“I don’t know.” The reply was soft, strangled as though it had taken a massive effort to utter the words.

Jack threw back the covers and came to his feet in one motion. He put a hand on Daniel’s shoulder, pulled it back. “You’re soaked. You take a shower before you came in here?”

Turning his head, Daniel looked at Jack as though he was surprised to see him there. He opened his mouth to speak, and Jack raised his brow, a silent sign of encouragement.

“I had another nightmare,” Daniel finally confessed.

“What was it, the Replicators again?”

Daniel looked for a moment like he might deny it, but finally just nodded.

“Damn bugs,” was all Jack said. “Okay, well, we have to get you out of these wet things. Come on in, sit on the bed.” He took Daniel by the elbow, led him that way. Daniel tensed briefly before giving in.

Depositing Daniel on the edge of the bed, Jack flipped on the light and retrieved a clean tee shirt and a pair of fleece lounging pants from his dresser. “I can go get you some underwear,” he offered as he handed the items over.

“No, I’m good.”

Daniel ducked his head. Embarrassed, Jack wondered, or was he hiding a timid smile? Had Daniel decided to go commando after all? As if they had a mind of their own, Jack’s eyes wandered to Daniel’s groin.

“Um.” Fearful Daniel had noticed, Jack sidestepped towards the hallway. “I’ll just, ah.” He crooked a thumb towards the bathroom. “I’ll leave you to that.”

It was all he could do to keep from fleeing the room. The self-rebuke began the moment the bathroom door was closed.

“Nice, O’Neill,” he berated himself through clenched teeth. “Your friend comes to you for comfort, and you fantasize about him naked?” Taking a cold shower might raise questions, so Jack settled for dowsing his face and neck at the sink. He paced the small space, purposefully pushing all thoughts of Daniel’s anatomy from his brain. When he’d estimated enough time had passed for Daniel to change his clothes, he gave himself one more kick in the pants – “Get your shit together, O’Neill” – and slipped back into the hallway.

Peering around the door jamb, Jack spotted a pool of clothing at the foot of the bed. “Hey, you decent?” he called softly. No reply was forthcoming, so he stepped into the room…and grinned to himself.

Daniel was snuggled down in Jack’s bed, on Jack’s pillows, fast asleep.

Jack’s smile faltered. His own desire to get Daniel into his bed aside, it was unlike Daniel to take over like that. He was the guy who gave up his bed; he’d never think to inconvenience someone else. He had also fallen back to sleep with uncharacteristic ease. What did that say about his physical state?

Switching off the light, Jack found his way to the overstuffed chair in the corner of his bedroom. He sat down, covered himself with the throw folded on the back of the chair, and settled in for an early morning of Daniel watching.

~oOo~

Daniel stretched, turning his face into the pillow to stifle a moan. The long muscles of his back pulled and popped, and he had to abort the stretch when his left calf seized. He rolled onto his back and waited for his leg to settle. He cracked his eyes open. Immediately, he sensed something was not right.

Two seconds later he knew why and sat up abruptly. He was in Jack’s bedroom. In Jack’s bed. He peeped over his shoulder, expecting to find Jack on the other side. A soft muttering redirected his attention to the chair in the corner. There, in what had to be an extremely uncomfortable sprawl, was Jack. Awkward position notwithstanding, he snored tunefully, a few sounds like words interspersed occasionally between choruses.

A fond smile tugged at Daniel’s lips. No matter what chaos life brought him, Jack was there to keep an eye on things.

Good thing too, because Daniel had the feeling he was right now in the midst of some pretty serious chaos. For one thing he had no idea how he’d ended up in Jack’s bed – the last thing he remembered was arguing with Jack about the tablet. He had a vague memory of replicators, but he had no idea how they fit into the general sense of anxiety that was currently plaguing him.

Jack stirred, and Daniel quickly swept a hand over the bedside table searching for his glasses. He should probably go out in the other room so he didn’t disturb Jack further. The glasses weren’t there so Daniel poked a hand under the pillows. Occasionally, when he fell asleep reading, he’d find them there in the morning, having removed them in the semi-conscious state between wakefulness and total slumber.

His fingers scraped against something big. Curious, Daniel walked his hand further beneath the pillow. He stifled a cry of excitement, sliding his hand beneath the tablet to pull it to his chest. Careful not to knock the lamp over in his haste to leave, he slipped into the hallway, closing the door behind him.

With a brief detour to his room – there were his glasses…and his legal pad! – Daniel hurried to the kitchen. He set the pad and tablet down on the counter and climbed onto a stool. As he reached for the tablet, his hands began to shake. That knot of dread was back in his stomach, and Daniel rotated his head to ease the tension mounting in his shoulders and neck. Holding his breath, he threw back the towel covering the tablet and searched for the spot where he’d left off yesterday.

**_‘It shall be illegal for any priest or initiate of the god to have relations with another man. This is the edict set down by Ishtaran, the great priest of Enlil. Any priest discovered to be engaging in such illicit behavior shall be immediately dismissed and held for further punishment.’_ **

That’s what had happened to Utu, Daniel was sure of it. He was being held by the Enu, awaiting punishment.

The revelation did nothing to settle Daniel’s unease. Given that the Enu was apparently obsessed with Utu, being at the man’s mercy was the worst case scenario. Perhaps the Enu merely had Utu imprisoned as the edit implied, or perhaps the Enu took advantage of his prisoner’s helplessness…

No, the possibility did not bear thinking about.

**_‘Should said priest be discovered engaging in such forbidden practice in the repository, which being beneath the temple is sacred ground, he shall be condemned to death.’_ **

Death. The word jumped off the tablet, gripped Daniel by the throat, and squeezed until his lungs ached for air. Was Ashnan waiting for Utu to contact him unaware that his lover was already dead?

**_In the twenty second year of the reign of Ishtaran, great priest of Enlil, Utu, a priest of Enlil, being accused by such Enu of violating the proscription against sexual conduct with another male, was detained and held in accordance with the law._ **

Daniel breathed again. Not dead yet.

**_The Enu likewise accused Ashnan, a citizen, of engaging in such practices with the priest Utu, in the repository, which, being beneath the temple is sacred ground. For this violation of the edict, the Enu decreed that Ashnan should be exiled, forever separated from his people._ **

And from Utu. Might as well have condemned him to death, too. Even without exile, by his own admission, he wouldn’t live long.

**_Ashnan, a citizen, requested to share the fate of the priest, Utu. The Enu granted such request. Though Utu begged for the life of his lover, Ashnan entreated all the more for an end; he could not go on living without Utu. One wonders if Ashnan might have changed his mind if he knew what the Enu had planned._ **

“What?” Daniel snapped. “What did that bastard do to them?”

**_However, he stood proudly with Ashnan when the Enu decreed their fate: imprisonment of their souls within the confines of a crystal, where they shall be parted from society – and from each other – for all eternity._ **

“No,” Daniel gasped. As though he’d just been told of the death of a loved one, the news drained him of all sense. He slumped, despondent, and nearly toppling from his seat. He clasped the front of his tee shirt, beneath which his heart beat erratically.

**_The Enu invoked the words of internment:_ **  
**_I speak now unto Utu, who of his own free will has chosen to violate an edict of the Enu. Hear me, Utu, and know that this fate is for thee! I bind thee Utu, that thou mayest not further defile the community with thy behavior, nor stir from the place into which I will cast thee. Thy indiscretions have delivered thee into my hands, Utu, and there is no respite from my wrath._ **

**_Thou hast violated the edict against sexual union with another man. Further, thou hast violated said edict within the temple repository which is ground sacred to Enlil._ **

**_For all these things, and for the common good, do I bind thee Utu, that thy soul be committed into this prepared crystal and bound there by the potent spells laid upon it by my own hands. Thou shalt likewise be barred even from entry into the underworld, whilst I hold thy soul in thrall, using it as I will. Know Utu that thine own machinations have delivered thee unto this fate._ **

**_This is my Will of thee._ **

A bright light slammed into his eyes, like a spotlight directed into his face, and Daniel squeezed them shut against it. Rather than dimming, the light increased. Beneath the halo surrounding his vision, a figure coalesced. A youth with dark hair. The boy from his dream. Utu.

Constrained to a large, flat rock by the hands of the dozen men who held him there, Utu struggled in vain. Contrary to Daniel’s dream, he showed no fear, only defiance, his eyes blazing into the man’s who held the crystal above him.

The room spun and Daniel found himself on his back, hands pressed into his flesh, looking into the face of a man whose smile was pure evil.

The light grew impossibly bright, whiting out all features. The hairs on his arms stood up, drawn to the light like metal shavings to a magnet. A force counter to that of the men holding him down pulled at Daniel, and he found himself unable to breath. The force centered on his chest as if its intent was to tear the heart from beneath his ribs. His eyes rolled back as the tension increased, and Daniel opened his mouth against the terrifying sensation of being ripped in two.

A scream pierced the brilliance – the sound of despair torn bleeding from the victim’s throat – seemingly forceful enough to kill the light which winked off at that moment.

The men released him and took a step back from the altar. The world turned and once again Daniel was off to the side, an observer.

Utu lay on the altar, immobile, eyes glassy and unseeing. Daniel watched for a moment, praying for his chest to stir with breath. The Enu held the jewel aloft; it glimmered softly, pulsing with the rhythm of a human heart. As he stared at the boy on the altar, Enu’s mouth drew into a hard line. His eyes glistened in the muted light, and Daniel wondered if he would shed tears of regret.

Instead, the Enu gestured harshly to the priests. They stepped forward again and, sliding their hands beneath the boy this time, lifted him from the altar. His head lolled to the side, eyes fixed on Daniel. He slouched in their hold, his body boneless. Lifeless.

“Bring me Ashnan,” the Enu demanded.

Another youth, slighter but just as tanned as the first, was lead to the altar. Unlike his lover, Ashnan was broken, his entire being slumped with emotional pain. Daniel knew then that it was Ashnan who had screamed as Utu was ripped from him.

Misery pressed down on him, would have consumed him, but Daniel held on. “This isn’t right.” There was a puzzle here, something niggling at the base of his brain. He could not – would not shut down – until he had an answer.

He pushed through the mounting grief, tearing at it, thick as the web of a thousand spiders, seeking. There, in the small bit of his consciousness still left, was the question.

“This is dark magic. The Sumerians didn’t practice dark magic.”

So, who was this Ishtaran?

“Hey. When did you get up?” Rounding the kitchen entry, Jack stretched, rubbed the back of his neck.

“Jack!” Daniel slid off the stool, reached in desperation for his friend. His knees buckled, and if not for the hold he had on Jack, he would have fallen.

“What the hell,” Jack spat sharply. He wrapped his arms around Daniel, guided him to a chair at the kitchen table.

“We have to go back!”

“Back where? You’re not going anywhere, except maybe to the infirmary.”

“No. Jack,” Daniel used his grip on Jack’s shirt, hauled himself upright in the chair, pushing determinedly against the restraining hand Jack laid on his shoulder. “Tamzi can help them. He’s studied the books, he can set them free.”

“Set who free? What are you talking about?”

“The crystals on the tablet.” His passion renewing his strength, Daniel stood, shook off Jack’s hold, and went to the counter. “This tablet tells the story…and the fate of two young lovers. Utu and Ashnan. The Enu of their time outlawed homosexuality – for the sole reason that one of them had declined the Enu’s advances. They were accused of violating that law, caught and condemned, imprisoned in these crystals.”

“Imprisoned.”

“Yes.”

Jack looked at the crystals, turned his gaze on Daniel, a thoughtful moue pursing his lips. He didn’t believe the story, Daniel knew, but he believed something was wrong. “Daniel,” he finally replied, “you said yourself, that tablet is two thousand years old. Those guys are long dead.”

“No, they’re not.”

“What do you mean ‘they’re not’?”

“I can’t explain it, I just, I feel them, Jack. Their physical bodies may have died but their…souls for lack of a better term are still here.”

“Here?”

“Here.” Daniel touched his temple. “I had a dream, Jack. It was so real; I felt everything that they felt.” Daniel placed his hand over the crystals. “When Tamzi first gave me the tablet, these crystals pulsed with energy, with life. Now they’re cold, dormant. I think maybe–”

“Uh huh. Look, Daniel, I know you get caught up in this stuff, these myths and all, but–”

“I’m not making this up, Jack.”

“I didn’t say you were making it up, just that you’re…”

“What? Nuts?”

“Confused, Daniel. Overworked and severely lacking in sleep.”  
  
“I just slept an entire day. Well, nearly.”

“Which tells me you’ve been working a lot more hours than even I suspected.”

“Jack!”

“Daniel!” The word had the tone of finality; Jack was through arguing about it. “We’ll be back on base tomorrow. Until then, you are to rest. Period.” He gathered up the tablet and Daniel’s legal pad. “I’m putting these away then I’m making breakfast. Why don’t you get a shower? You look like hell.”

Watching him walk away, Daniel heaved a shaky sigh. “I think that’s because I’m not the only one using this body right now,” he disclosed to the empty room.

~oOo~

Cleaning up after lunch – the second meal today Daniel had refused to eat – Jack called over his shoulder to the man pacing the hallway outside his kitchen, “You know it’s a lot easier to rest if you sit down.”

Daniel froze, aimed an icy stare at him. Jack held the glare, added an impatient smirk. This shit had gone on long enough. Daniel had spent the morning blathering incessantly about crystals and stolen souls and two thousand year old people inhabiting his body.

“Maybe if you went outside and communed with nature,” he suggested snidely.

Daniel animated, launched at him, stormed into the kitchen. “See! Right there! That proves my argument. When is the last time I went out in the freezing cold, half naked and enjoyed it? I hate the cold.”

“So because you’re acting a little…weird...I’m supposed to believe you have aliens in your head? Let’s face it, Daniel; you’re not the most conventional guy. I would think it was weird if you didn’t act weird.”

Looking as though Jack had just slapped him, Daniel’s mouth dropped open on a broken gasp.

“I can’t believe you said that,” he choked. His voice was shredded, as though forced to pass through shards of glass on its way up from his throat. His eyes grew suspiciously bright. A droplet of water escaped the confines of his left eye, traveling a lazy path down Daniel’s cheek.  
He swiped at it with brutal impact, muttered an apology, and fled the room.

Jack followed him to the hallway, watched him retreat to his bedroom. He considered the closed door a moment.

“Okay. **That** was weird.”  
  
He turned back around, picked up the phone in the kitchen, gave Fraiser a call.

Fifteen minutes later he was tapping on Daniel’s door, offering an apology of his own, along with a ride to the base.

He failed to mention they were headed for the infirmary.

~oOo~

“I felt Utu’s life force leave him, and I experienced the despair of his lover, Ashnan. Somehow, they have left those crystals and are now here, in me.”

Fraiser’s meticulously tweezed brow arched in query. She turned a confused look on Jack, who merely offered a vague shrug.

“How?” she inquired of Daniel.

From his perch on the infirmary bed, Daniel heaved a sigh that hovered somewhere between forced patience and full out annoyance. Considering Jack had expected a fight that would make the Godzilla/Mothra bout through Japan look like a couple of puppies sparring in the back yard when Fraiser met them at the entrance, he thought Daniel was holding it together amazingly well.

“I don’t know.” Daniel’s response was slow, measured, as though he was speaking to a child.

Or not.

“Which is why I need to go back to P4C-724. Tamzi knows their story; he can explain what’s going on.”

Fraiser put on her most resolute doctor face, the one she usually utilized when trying to convince a certain recalcitrant patient that he really needed to stay in the infirmary overnight. “Yes, but Daniel you have to admit it’s a bit of stretch to have us believe you’ve been taken over by a pair of ghosts.”

An index finger came up, Daniel’s patented ‘let me try this one more time’ gesture. “They are not taking over. As a matter of fact, having had no control over his own life, Utu is adamantly against that particular tactic.”

“He told you this?” Jack’s question dripped sarcasm.

“Not…exactly. It’s more a feeling.”

“Look, Daniel, lord knows I’ve seen my fair share of alien devices and organisms, usually in relation to your team. What I’m not seeing is evidence of what you claim is going on here.” Fraiser flipped open a chart lying on the rolling cart near the bed. “There are no foreign substances in your blood that I can detect, no foreign bodies, according to your post-mission MRI–”

“They’re spirits, Janet. I don’t think they’ll affect either of those things.”

Something clicked in Jack’s brain. “What about your emotions?”

“What about them?” Daniel’s back hunched slightly, like a cat who’s just spied an intruder.

Jack turned to Fraiser, who presented a friendlier mien. “He’s been all over the place the last few days, angry then…” He shot Daniel an apologetic wince. “Twice in the last two days, he’s been upset enough to cry.”

Fraiser processed that a moment. “Daniel?”

“It was three times, actually. I lost it completely on your picnic table when you took the tablet away. I think it’s them. Since we’ve been back I’ve felt things in a way I’ve never felt them before, my reactions are…overblown, I guess.”

“Like your nearly obscene response to breakfast the other morning.”

Fraiser’s eyebrows leapt into her bangs, while Daniel’s neck retracted between his shoulders as he attempted to hide.

“He was sorta…” Jack squirmed at the memory. “He kept making these noises, hungry, groaning sounds, like he’d never had bacon and eggs before, or like that mango jelly he likes was the best thing he’d ever eaten.”

“Like he was experiencing it for the first time...” Fraiser trailed off, expecting him to follow.

“Like the time we had that annoying computer chip in our brains,” Jack realized.

“Urgo, yes, sir.”

“Well, we know these guys have access to advance technology, their unimpressive surroundings notwithstanding.”

Daniel sat and watched their back and forth like he was at a tennis match, a member of the audience, not a participant.

“As I said, there was nothing untoward on his MRI, but I should perform an electron resonance scan just to be sure.” She spun on her heel, gesturing to a nurse as he headed to her office.

“You’re not going to find anything,” Daniel called after her. “I told you it’s–”

“Ghosts,” Jack said over him. “Okay, but you may as well let Fraiser run her tests. She’s not going to sign off on a return to the planet until she’s convinced it’s not something else.”

There was nothing Daniel could say to that – Jack was right of course – so he just folded his arm across his chest and waited for Janet to return.

~oOo~

Daniel sat at the briefing room table, eyes sighting something in the indeterminate distance, fingers drumming a rhythmic beat on the table’s shiny surface.

_It’s better than wearing a hole in the floor, I suppose, Jack thought. Still, I’m usually the one who fidgets, anxious for the briefing to start. Daniel’s usually so engrossed in his notes and squiggles, he doesn’t even know there’s anyone else in the room._

The percussion demo rolled to a halt, and Jack turned to find Carter and Teal’c round the doorway. Teal’c strode directly to them, while Carter paused, smiled at Daniel and detoured to the coffee pot on the left hand side of the room. She soon joined them, a mug of coffee in each hand. She deposited one in front of Daniel.

“It’s not often I get to bring you a cup of coffee,” she chuckled.

Daniel returned the smile, but Jack noticed his nose wrinkle in objection. Daniel shook his head and pushed the mug aside.

Catching Jack’s eye, Carter arched a curious brow. ‘What was that about?’

Jack shrugged. She’d find out soon enough.

He started to push himself out of this seat as Hammond and Doctor Fraiser exited the general’s office and headed to the table.

“Keep your seat, Colonel,” Hammond ordered. He seated himself at his customary spot at the head of the table, waiting just long enough for the others to sit down before turning to Daniel.

“Doctor Jackson. How are you feeling, son?”

“I’m fine, General.” The curt, sharp delivery told everyone there he was anything but. “Just a little put out that I’m having to jump through all these hoops Doctor Fraiser is putting in my path before she’ll let me go back to P4C-724.”

“Technically, that decision is mine,” Hammond reminded him, “and I must confess, I’m concerned with what I’m hearing about your behavior since you were last off world.”

“That’s why I need to go back,” Daniel retorted. He was using that ‘do you people understand nothing’ tone again. “I have to speak with Tamzi. He was the one who introduced me to these spirits, he’s most likely the only one–”

Jack snapped upright in his seat. “What are you saying? That kid is responsible for this?”

“Hold on, Colonel,” Hammond appealed, aiming a ‘calm down’ gesture his way. “Before we go accusing a potential new ally of some misdeed, why don't we get the full story from Doctor Jackson?”

“Seriously? Again? You just spent thirty minutes discussing my ‘condition’,” Daniel drew air quotes, “with Doctor Fraiser. She never once mentioned my theory regarding its cause?”

Hammond’s lips flattened, his normally genial gaze clouding. “She told me you believe you are harboring two incorporeal entities…”

“What?” Jack heard Carter gasp.

“…that you acquired on your mission to P4C-724. What she did not tell me – and I need to learn from you – is exactly how that happened.”

Daniel rapped impatiently on the table, dramatically threw himself back in his chair like a four year old told he had to eat his vegetables before dessert. “It was the crystals on the tablet.”

“What tablet?” Carter asked. She looked from Daniel to Jack, who suddenly found his fingers fascinating. Carter’s eyes were burning holes in his temples.

 _Probably should have run that tablet through proper channels,_ he realized belatedly _. Suppose it’s too much to hope Daniel won’t tell them he has it at my house._

“The tablet Tamzi showed me in the library. It’s covered in cuneiform writing, and has two stones, side by side on the cover.” Daniel laughed, but there was no amusement in it. “It was especially cruel to place them so close but not quite touching. The Enu was a despicable, spiteful man.”

“Now, wait a minute,” Carter objected.

Teal’c was likewise confused. “Enu was a most gracious host, Daniel Jackson.” This from a man Enu had initially called ‘evil one.’

“Not Enu,” Jack tried to calm them. “ **The** Enu. The guy Daniel says locked these kids up in the crystals two thousand years ago.”

Hammond startled. “Two thousand years? Did this Tamzi tell you all this, Doctor Jackson?”

“No. It was written on the tablet. Remember, I said there was a story in cuneiform.”

Now it was Carter’s turn to be surprised. “You were able to read it in just the few hours you were in the repository?”

“No. I read it at Jack’s house. Tamzi insisted I bring it back with me. He said it would help me understand what happened… and what needs to happen next.”

Suddenly it didn’t matter to Jack that Daniel had spilled the beans about the tablet. “What exactly is supposed to happen next?”

“I don’t know. That’s why I need to go back.” Daniel stood. “So, if you’re through questioning me–”

“Hold on, son–”

“No!” Daniel shoved his chair back with such force it toppled over.

An armed airman stepped into the periphery of Jack’s vision. His expression was no nonsense, his weapon ready.

“None of this is relevant,” Daniel raged. “The only thing you need to know is I have to get back there so Tamzi can help me free these spirits. Jack!”

Daniel turned to him so quickly, Jack flinched. Daniel’s eyes were large, pleading, completely devoid of the anger he’d been expressing. His fingers kneaded the fabric at Jack’s right shoulder, gripping but afraid to take hold.

“Jack, I have to go back now. Please, they need our help. They’ve waited long enough. They’re so close now. Just through that ‘gate.” Daniel aimed a shaky finger at the window, the Stargate beyond.

Shocked at the sudden change and powerless to do anything about it, Jack sent an appeal to Hammond. “General, maybe we should–”

Daniel shoved him away suddenly, whirled on the room, his fury returning. “God! Two thousand years! That’s not long enough for you people? We have to debate it further?” He spun, stomped toward the exit.

“Daniel!” Jack hollered at the same time Hammond bellowed, “Doctor Jackson!”

The airman stepped into Daniel’s path, a second man coming from the opposite exit to join him.

Daniel turned, and Jack’s heart broke. Daniel looked bereft, like he thought he hadn’t a friend in the world.

As Teal’c righted Daniel’s chair, the airmen escorted Daniel back to the table. He flopped down into his seat as though he hadn’t the strength to do otherwise. His head hung loosely on his neck, his face turned to the chair back.

“Son,” Hammond began, “am I going to have to ask Doctor Fraiser to sedate you? Because I don’t want to do that.”

Daniel looked up, miserable. He tugged the glasses from his face, scrubbed the tears from his cheeks. “I honestly don’t know if it would make a difference,” he said softly. “I’m not sure I’m completely in control any more.”

Hammond looked concerned, turned his eyes to Jack. Daniel heaved himself upright, anxious.

“They’re not malicious, General. I know Mesopotamian lore says spirits are evil, vindictive. But I promise you, these souls are not. They’re desperate. Wouldn’t you be?”

“I’m not unsympathetic, Daniel,” Hammond assured him, backing up the sentiment with the rare use of Daniel’s first name. “But it’s my responsibility to ensure the people going through the Stargate are fit to do so. You have to admit your behavior this past hour casts doubt on that status.”

Daniel chuckled, nodded. “I can’t argue with that. If I didn’t know what was going on, I’d be seriously concerned myself. It’s not me, though. Ashnan is justifiably disconsolate. Seems every time we make a move towards ending their suffering, a roadblock appears. Utu is just angry. It’s guilt, really. He thinks this is all his fault. Of course, that’s ridiculous. You can’t choose who you love.”

Hammond cleared his throat. “Doctor Jackson, if you’ll excuse us. Colonel O’Neill, Doctor Fraiser, I’d like to speak to you in my office.” Without waiting for a reply, Hammond rose and headed that way.

“Right behind you, sir.” Jack put a hand on Daniel’s shoulder, squeezed. “Are you going to be all right for a few minutes?”

“Sure. What’s a few more minutes in the grand scheme of things?”

“Daniel Jackson will be safe with us, O’Neill.”

“We’ll take care of him, sir.”

Comforted by the assurances of his team, Jack got up and followed after Fraiser to Hammonds’s office. He closed the door behind him and immediately went on the defensive.

“General, I’d like to apologize for the breach in protocol regarding that tablet. Daniel was so insistent – you know how he can be – and it was just a hunk of rock with some pretty stones–”

Hammond gave him a quelling gesture. “Take it easy, Jack. From what Doctor Jackson says the damage was done before the tablet came back through the gate. We will reserve this conversation for another time, however.”

“Yes, sir. Thank you.”

“Doctor, are there any other tests you can run that might confirm whether Doctor Jackson really is harboring two ghosts.”

“The only thing we haven’t tried is hypnosis.”

“Hypnosis,” Jack grunted. “Think you can coax Daniel’s visitors out of hiding?”

“Not me. I’ll have to contact Doctor McKenzie…”

“McKenzie? He and Daniel don’t have the best history.”

“I realize that, sir, but Doctor McKenzie is the best trained psychiatrist we have.”

“General, is this really necessary. I’ve been with Daniel these last two days. Other than the mood swings – and a few odd incidents involving food – Daniel has been himself. In my opinion, Daniel is being straight with us. He is possessed, or has custody or whatever, of these two spirits. Whether or not he has control is moot; all any of them wants is to go through the ‘gate so Daniel can get them out of there.”

Hammond sat back, appeared to take Jack’s recommendation under advisement. “Doctor?”

Fraiser shrugged vaguely. “As far as I can tell, there is nothing medically wrong with him. For what it’s worth, sir, I trust Colonel O’Neill’s assessment. He knows Daniel better than anyone.”

Taking less time to consider Fraiser’s comments, Hammond pushed himself from his chair. “Okay, Jack. You have a go.”

“Thank you, sir!” Jack leapt towards the door. Nearly forgetting himself, he pulled up short, opened the door so Hammond could precede him. Hammond took a few steps into the briefing room.

“Doctor Jackson, do you think you can be ready to go in one hour?”

“Yes, sir!” Daniel stood. It seemed to take a Hercluean effort.

 _Weak with relief, no doubt_ , Jack figured. _Probably shouldn’t mention how close he came to seeing McKenzie again._

That was a secret Jack was glad to keep.

~oOo~

Daniel waited just long enough for the worm hole to resolve behind him, ensuring that all of teammates had made it through, before starting down the steps of the dais. Now that they were so close to freedom, Utu and Ashnan tensed with anticipation. Their anxiety blended with Daniel’s was wreaking havoc on Daniel’s nerves.

“Hold on,” Jack called after him. “What are you planning to do, jog through the desert?” He caught up to Daniel, settling a hand on his shoulder.

Daniel jerked away, the touch unexpectedly painful. “Weren’t you listening to me in the briefing, Jack? Tamzi knows how to release Utu and Ashnan. I’m sure of it. Otherwise why would he have given me the tablet?”

“Because he sensed you’re stubborn enough to keep on until you get what you want?”

Daniel pulled a breath, ready to reiterate the importance to their mission when Jack threw up his hands, a plea for peace. “We’ll find Tamzi,” he promised, “and we’ll find out what he knows, but you’re gonna have to be a bit patient. It’s a hundred degrees out here. I don’t know about Teal’c and Carter, but I’m not up to a four kilometer run.”

“I would have no difficulty with such an undertaking,” Teal’c announced, and Jack threw him a dirty look.

Something about the exchange calmed him, and Daniel smiled. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be difficult. It’s just…I need to see this through.”

“That’s completely understandable, Daniel,” Sam assured him. “But I’m with the colonel on this one. I’ve done a five kilometer hike in the Sinai at double time with full kit. Teal’c’s claim notwithstanding, I think we’d be better off taking our time.”

“I’m just anxious to have this finished.” The familiar pain of tightening muscles lanced across the space between his shoulder blades. Under the guise of hitching his pack higher on his shoulders, Daniel stretched and began walking. “Now that we’re here on the planet, I feel an even greater urgency to get to the city.”

“It’s okay, Daniel. We’ll get there,” Sam soothed.

It was the longest forty-five minutes of Daniel’s life. Finally, they trudged into the city. Inquiries at the market netted the information that Enu and several of his priests were in the temple, Tamzi among them.

“So, the little weasel showed his face after we left,” Jack growled as they made their way to the temple complex. “Probably just as well I didn’t see him then. No telling what I might have done if I’d gotten my hands on him in the library.”

Nerve impulses pinged along Daniel’s spine. The muscles in his left thigh twitched, and Daniel stumbled a bit. “You’re going to be able to resist that temptation now, though, right? I need Tamzi in one piece so he can release these spirits.”

“You’re sure he can do it? Get them out of you?”

“Tamzi is a priest of Enlil, and a scholar. He’s spent nearly as much time in the repository studying as I have in my lab.”

“Think he sneaks back after lights out, too?”

Daniel let the reprimand pass without comment. “He should know most if not every spell and incantation passed down through the generations. My guess is he’ll use a kind of exorcism. He told me he’s well versed in the art.”

“Exorcism, huh?” Jack scoffed. “Your head’s not going to spin around is it?”

A bolt of electricity shot across the back of his neck, and Daniel wondered if it might not even as he drolly replied, “No, Jack.”

They crossed the bridge, entered the temple complex, and went directly to the temple square. Only a dozen or so people waited there, those with petitions for Enlil or in need of a healer, Daniel surmised. Squinting against the sun, he gazed to the top of the ziggurat, looking for any sign the priests were returning. His hands were shaking so violently now, he shoved them into his pockets so his teammates wouldn’t worry.

“Daniel!”

Daniel turned, nodded at Ea as he approached.

“Tamzi told me you would return soon.”

Jack snorted. “Like you didn’t know that anyway. You were in on this from the beginning.”  
  
“Colonel O’Neill, please.” Ea glanced around them, fearful. Clearly he did not want anyone else to hear. “I knew what Tamzi planned, yes. As I told you when last we met, he had no wish to harm anyone. Things did not go exactly as he had planned, but Tamzi could not let it go. Once he learned of the injustice, he could not rest until it was corrected.”

“What do you mean ‘things didn’t go as planned’?”

Daniel gripped Jack’s arm, pulled him a few steps away from Ea. “It doesn’t matter, Jack. All that matters now is getting Tamzi to complete the spell. He can do that, right? He can release Utu and Ashnan?”

“Yes. Tamzi is very skilled in the magical arts. He always intended to do just that, but–”

“Things didn’t go as planned. Yeah, so you said.” Jack snapped his gaze down at his arm, back up to Daniel.

Daniel released him and stepped back, knowing full well Jack had felt his hand tighten spasmodically around his bicep.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine, just…jumpy. I think it’s got something to do with having three of us in here. We’re all anxious to have this done so our emotions are working a little overtime. Unfortunately, we’re all sharing the same neural network so it’s kind of like a perfect storm of nervous mania.”

“Damn it,” Jack muttered. “How long have they been in the temple? Daniel needs to see Tamzi now.”

“There is no way to know. Tamzi was selected to participate in a ceremony asking blessing for a newborn child. It is not unheard of for these appeals to last well into the night.”

Daniel grunted softly as another spasm assailed him. Sam laid a comforting hand on his back. Teal’c – man of action that he is – took a menacing step towards the only one around on whom he could lay blame for his friend’s discomfort.

“Daniel Jackson should not be required to wait,” he boomed at the kid. “It is because of the priest named Tamzi that he requires assistance.”

“Teal’c, please,” Daniel said. “There’s nothing we can do but wait.”

“There is a way to bring them out sooner,” Ea said hesitantly, “but it must only be used in an emergency.”

“This qualifies,” Jack decreed.

Teal’c seconded the assessment by planting the butt of his staff weapon in the ground by the kid’s feet. “What must be done?”

“There is a gong at the base of the temple. Strike it twice, and the priests will descend.”

Without waiting for Jack to okay the plan, Teal’c hefted his staff, strode purposefully to the ziggurat and swung the weapon at the gong. He struck it squarely in the center, once, twice.

By the time the rest of SG-1 and Ea walked to the temple, the priests had begun their climb down. Midway, one of the priests broke ranks and hurried down the remaining stairs, jogging towards them.

“Daniel,” Tamzi greeted breathlessly. “I am relieved you have come back.”

Jack got in the kid’s face. “Yeah, well, that relief is going to be short lived if you don’t get those spirits out of him, and I mean now!”

Insinuating a hand between them, Daniel shoved at Jack with his elbow.

“Colonel O’Neill!” The volume of Enu’s reprimand was too low to qualify as a shout, but it held the same authority. “Why have you summoned the priests from their duties?”

“Enu, they have come to see me. Daniel is unwell. I will take him somewhere to heal him.” Tamzi began to back away, towards the section of the temple grounds that contained Enu’s throne.

And the underground tunnel, Daniel realized. He followed immediately, his team falling in behind him.

Approaching the throne, Tamzi angled to the right. He stopped at a clump of shrubbery growing against a large building – administration? dormitory? Daniel had forgotten to ask. On his knees, Tamzi pushed aside a flowering bush, revealing the entrance to a tunnel.

“Sam, help me with my pack?” Daniel turned his back to her and disconnected the pack from his vest. Turning to find the pack safely in Sam’s grip, he took his flashlight from a side pocket and stood by Tamzi.  
  
“I would first speak with Daniel alone,” the youth said, gesturing Daniel forward.

“Not a chance in hell.” Jack tossed Teal’c a look, turned his back on the Jaffa and undid his pack. “I’m coming with you.”

“Jack.”

“Don’t even start, Daniel. I am not leaving you alone with this guy. You do remember he lured you into an underground cavern and abandoned you, allowing two spirits to inhabit your body?”

“All he wanted was to help two people condemned to imprisonment because of their love for one another. Tamzi and Ea could face the same fate if they’re discovered. I think we can forgive him his desperation.”

Jack looked for a moment like he might argue but ultimately just threw a hand in the air in defeat. He turned to Tamzi. “I guess I understand why you did…what you did. I still want to come with you.”

“You cannot bring that.” Tamzi aimed his chin at the P-90 cradled in Jack’s arms.

Jack met and held Daniel’s gaze. Without hesitation, he handed the weapon over to Teal’c. For good measure, he unzipped his vest, released the strap of the holster with his sidearm from his leg and shoved the whole shebang in Teal’c’s arms. He bent and fished his flashlight from the thigh pocket of his pants.

Daniel rewarded him was a grateful smile, slipping out of his own vest. He switched on his flashlight and started down the tunnel. Easily navigating the twists and turns that had alarmed him the first time, he kept a rapid pace. Jack was breathing heavily behind him but his steps never faltered.

Finally, they reached the alcove. Tamzi slid by him and ducked under the curtain. The beam of Jack’s flashlight joined his on the floor of the tunnel, and the union sent an unusual ping of excitement into Daniel’s groin. Or maybe it was just his overactive nerve endings.

A soft light glowed from behind the curtain, its intensity growing with each moment they waited. Stray fingers of brilliance, like the lights of a theater stage, angled through tiny rents in the fabric, dust motes whirling an impromptu dance.

One step closer to their freedom, Utu and Ashnan sent out a burst of emotion that had Daniel doubling in pain. His right hand clenched, curled toward his forearm as though with palsy. The flashlight plummeted from his grip, a collision with the rock wall snuffing out its light.

“Hey, take it easy, will ya?” Jack wrapped a supportive arm around Daniel’s back, held him close.

“I don’t think they can hear you, Jack,” Daniel panted. The neural assault soon had his muscles twitching with abandon, and he leaned into Jack, fearful his legs would give out.  
  
“What are you doing in there? Daniel needs to sit down.”

The curtain flew back. Without waiting for an invitation, Jack all but carried Daniel past Tamzi, into the alcove.

There was a woven mat on the floor, bits of straw peeping from beneath it. Jack headed there, and with total disregard for the audible complaints of his joints, knelt slowly, guiding Daniel’s descent.

Jack sat next to Daniel on the mat. He hadn’t yet relinquished his hold. “Did you know this would happen? That he’d be in pain like this?”

“I did not. I can mix a potion…”

Jack seemed about to decline but instead canted his head to look Daniel in the face. “You want something for the pain?”

Daniel nodded, but he wasn’t certain it was deliberate or just a misfire of nerve endings.

Gesturing the kid to proceed, Jack enfolded Daniel in both arms. “Is this helping?”

 _Oh, god, so much_ , Daniel thought but, “Yes,” was all he said.

In a few moments, Tamzi returned with a small pottery bowl. Daniel heard Jack sniff.

“What’s in it?”

“Cassia mixed with beer.”

“Cassia?”

“It’s a spice,” Daniel replied.

Jack slackened his hold, took the bowl and held it to Daniel’s lips. A bit of the brew was sacrificed to Daniel’s jerky movements, but he drank until the bowl was drained. The concoction was bitter, even more bitter than he remembered the beer to be. He pulled a face, sticking out his tongue.

“Doesn’t taste so good, huh?” Jack surmised. “Bet you won’t complain about Fraiser’s needles next time.” He set the bowl aside, resumed his hold.

Daniel relaxed into him, Tamzi’s medicine working surprisingly quickly to ease his discomfort. The impulses shooting through him dulled to a pleasant hum beneath his skin.

He took the opportunity to look around. Chiseled into the rock midway down the underground path, the room was no bigger than the walk-in closet in Daniel’s apartment. Illuminated with a half dozen of the glowing gems, the small space was bathed with muted incandescence; it was like having a fire without the heat. Aside from the mat upon which they sat, there was a pair of seats cut out in the wall, similar to the one in the library, and a nook from which Daniel guessed Tamzi had gotten his medical supplies.

A faint fragrance – cedar – hung in the air, probably mixed with the straw beneath the mat. The mat itself was made of linen, natural in color, the edges lined through with red fibers that met in the four corners in a quasi-plaid pattern. The border was unfinished, giving it a short fringed effect. It was large enough for two grown men to sleep…or do other things.

Daniel flushed, squirmed at the sudden stirring of his dick. He and Jack were sharing the spot where Tamzi and Ea made love.

“Hey, you okay?”

Daniel turned towards Jack, who was close enough Daniel could feel Jack’s breath on his cheek. _Close enough to kiss._

“Fine.” There was a comical squeak at the end of the statement but Jack didn’t comment on it. Daniel cleared his throat – his annoyingly dry throat. “Thank you, Tamzi, your potion was very effective.” Extricating himself from Jack’s arms, Daniel put a hand against the wall and pulled himself up. At full extension he paused a moment to make sure his legs wouldn’t betray him before letting go of the wall.

Jack shot up beside him, the quickness of the move belying the oft complained-about deterioration of his knees. “Somebody want to tell me exactly what’s going on here? I know Daniel has apparently picked up a couple of hitchhikers but I’d really like to know how that happened and why.”

“It was necessary,” Tamzi said.

“Jack, you have to understand. They were imprisoned, separated for two thousand years. Just because they loved each other.”

“So you said. Imprisoned in the stones. So, how did they get from the stones into you?”

Daniel opened his mouth to reply, realized he didn’t have the answer. His visit to the library was an almost complete blank. He’d felt a bit light-headed then he drifted off to what sounded like a chant. A muscle ticked in his jaw as he turned to Tamzi.

“As you suspect Daniel, it was I who released them from the crystals while you held the book.”

“Why?”

“As you said, they had been imprisoned–”

“No, I understand why you did it. Why me?”

“The stars revealed you to me. I believed it was your fate to help them.”

“Why didn’t you ask before you let them inhabit him?”

Tamzi directed his response to Daniel. “I am sorry. I could not risk that you would decline. You were not supposed to harbor the spirits so long. Once I freed them to dwell within you, I assumed you would readily agree to the remainder of the spell.”

“You said it was his fate.”

“To right a grievous wrong, yes. But there was no way to know definitively that this was the injustice he was destined to fight. The stars are not specific in their information.”

Jack shrugged a shoulder, conceding the point. “Yeah. I gotta tell ya, that’s a sloppy system you’ve got.”

“If you are saying it would be beneficial for the stars to reveal the name of whom they speak, I agree. Divination revealed only that there was someone who could overturn the curse – for that is essentially what this is. When I met Daniel, I sensed in him someone who, like Utu and Ashnan, was forced to love in secret.”

Beside him, Jack tensed, and Daniel’s heart began to gallop. Jack turned his head, looked at him with deliberation, as if he hadn’t entirely seen him before. Daniel breathed normally, willed his heart to calm. There was no way Jack could know Tamzi was talking about him.

Finally, Jack shook himself, turned back to Tamzi. “If all it took was someone with a secret love, why didn’t you do it yourself?”

“I could not. I am a priest, as is my lover. The law requires expulsion for any citizen accused of violating the prohibition against loving another of the same sex. For those who serve the god, the punishment is death. I could not put Ea in jeopardy.”

“Has it always been illegal for two men to love? Homosexuality was not taboo in ancient Mesopotamia – um, the place where your people originated. In fact, free sexual expression was seen as one of the benefits of civilized life.”

“And so it was when our ancestors first colonized this place. My study indicates that Enlil brought his people here following an invasion of their original homeland which posed a threat both to him and to them. Several of his allies were killed fighting to prevent these invaders from claiming his followers as their own.”

“This is the threat Enu spoke of when we first met. He said this enemy had not been seen in many ages.”

“Yes. Enlil transported his people in a great ship to this place. It is written he escaped with only a few hundred followers. There is no word on what became of those remaining.”

“The civilization your people left thrived for many years. I’ll have to do some research of our history to determine when this invasion may have occurred, but I’m not aware of any record of someone overrunning the region and making off with the population. If the Goa’uld did invade the region, it seems the Mesopotamians were able to fight them off.”

Jack cleared his throat, his typical signal to move things along.

“Your people have accomplished quite a bit considering so few of you made it to this planet. This city could rival one of our own in size and complexity. It’s nearly as crowded, too. Your population certainly seems to be thriving.”

Tamzi frowned. “But not always.” He motioned them both to the seats cut into the rock. Jack declined the invitation with a wave of his hand, choosing instead to take what Daniel recognized as a defensive position on the opposite side of the room. Beyond the glow gems sphere of influence, he would have vanished into the shadows if not for his light-toned desert cammo. As it was, Daniel had to squint to see him clearly.

Daniel sat down, and Tamzi continued.

“Many of those brought here were women and children, the men, as you might imagine, having gone to fight to protect their families.”

“It’s instinct,” Jack commented. “Protecting the ones you love.”

“Exactly,” Tamzi concurred. “However, because so few men were transported here, in the early years that followed their transplantation, the population had failed to increase by an amount necessary to sustain them long term. There were women enough to bear future generations but not enough men to plant the seeds. Most of the males were boys, unable yet to sire.”

Daniel gasped, the solution hitting him like a club. “So, they forced men in same-sex relationships to father children.”

“To father children, yes, but they were not required to marry the women they impregnated. Men were free to continue relations with each other. All men took on the responsibility of raising the children; they were not abandoned. Once the population reached a sustainable level, men were released from the duty to procreate.

“Until two thousand years ago.”  
  
“Yes. There was a drought. A famine struck the community; many perished from hunger and illness. Once again, our numbers became dangerously low. It was decreed that all men should contribute to increasing our numbers. However, Ishtaran, who was Enu at the time, also decreed that men and women could no longer choose their partners. Men were to marry women. It was their duty to populate the planet regardless of their personal feelings towards another man of their own choosing.”

“He took away the option of fathering children while maintaining their relationship with the person they loved.”

“Yes. The Enu banned all same sex unions and decreed that anyone caught engaging in such practices would be banished. Priests would be put to death.”

Jack grunted as he pushed himself off the wall. “That seems a bit harsh.”

Surprised by the seeming show of support, Daniel offered Jack a smile of thanks. Considering that Jack had spent the majority of his life in an organization that refused to recognize any value in homosexuals, dismissing and even downright demonizing individuals based solely on their sexual orientation, that small evidence of enlightened thinking from his friend was welcome.

_I wonder what he’d think if he knew his best friend was gay. Worse that his best friend was deeply, madly in love with him._

“There was no difference, really,” Tamzi said bitterly. “Denying them the right to love was tantamount to a death sentence.”

“Wait a minute, you’re telling me there have been no homosexual couples on this planet in two thousand years?”

Daniel smiled, a look a teacher might give a clueless student. “No, Jack. It’s more likely no one was ever caught. Except Utu and Ashnan.”

“Their crime and the punishment that followed is public record. Though it occurred eons ago, the story has been passed down between the generations. My own father told me, never knowing that my feelings for my best friend put me in danger of repeating the lovers’ mistake.”

Daniel’s eyes were drawn to Jack. Here was his best friend, a man he had come to love far more than that. He felt Jack’s gaze on him, the sensation so intense, he had to look away. He turned to Tamzi.

“Given what they suffered, I suppose most homosexual men would have chosen to suppress those feelings, rather than suffer the same fate.”

“Most, but not all.”

“You and Ea.”

“Yes. Like Utu and Ashnan we could not live one without the other.

“It was never told what became of the crystals. They were buried in the repository, the place they were charged with desecrating, between the wall and a shelf, behind multiple rows of books. And they would have remained there, perhaps for all eternity were my thirst for knowledge not so great. I read their story and lamented that there was nothing I could do to free them. I would not risk exposing myself and Ea to grave danger.

“Then the stars told me of one who had the power, the compassion, to free them, and I knew when I met you, Daniel, that you were that one.”

“You couldn’t have your Enu change the law? He doesn’t have that power?”

“The power to alter laws of previous Enus yes, but when this law was written, the Enu claimed it was on the order of Enlil, in exchange for ending the famine.”

“And Enlil has not been back since you discovered the tablet.”

Jack stepped out of the shadows. “You know as interesting as this history lesson is, it still doesn’t explain why you forced these spirits on Daniel.”

“That’s just the official version, Jack. Utu’s letters tell a different story.”

“Ishtahar – the Enu at that time – desired Utu,” Tamzi explained. “When Utu declined his advances, Ishtahar ensured that Utu and his lover could never be together again.”

“I’m guessing this Ishtar is also the one who sentenced these kids to exile inside the crystals,” Jack growled.

“Yes. He cursed Utu and Ashnan to an eternity apart from one another. It is the cruelest of fates. Death would have been preferable.”

Meeting Daniel’s eyes – giving Daniel the opportunity to read the outrage and…concern dwelling there – Jack took the information in. “So,” he asked at length, “how can Daniel help?”

“The curse can be broken, but it requires physical contact.”

Daniel tore his gaze from Jack’s. “Um, by contact, do you mean…?”

“Close physical contact. A kiss would suffice.”

“Oh. Okay, that still leaves us with a problem. You indicated it requires two to break the spell, one for each soul trapped.”

“Yes, you and your heart mate.”

“See that’s where the problem comes in; what exactly do you mean by my ‘heart mate’.”

“Someone you love devotedly, and who loves you in the same manner.”

 _Of course_. “I don’t suppose it will work if the love only goes one way?”

“I do not understand.”

“Your divinations were right – to a point. I’m certainly willing to help break the curse, but I’m not so sure I have the power. I am in love with someone…and that someone is another man.” Daniel frowned, took a big breath. Admitting it out loud – especially with Jack, the focal point of his affection, standing right there – was harder than he’d realized. “But he doesn’t love me back, at least not in that way.”

“Oh!” The exclamation barely qualified as a whisper. “That is the only way to break the curse.”

A tingling sensation broke out across his scalp, and for a second Daniel had the oddest feeling he was at war with himself. Anger battled with despair for supremacy, bringing Daniel to the brink of frustrated tears. He closed his eyes, murmured into his mind, _don’t give up_ , repeating the phrase until Utu and Ashnan calmed.

Daniel wondered how long his mantra would pacify his visitors. “I don’t suppose you have any suggestions on how I can live with Utu and Ashnan without going crazy.”

“No.” The reply was given with such regret that Daniel began to fear insanity was in his future – his projected fate notwithstanding.

“There is no one?” Tamzi prompted. “You are certain? It **is** your fate to free them. The stars have declared it so.”

“Then there’s got to be another way to do it, because, there is no one who loves me with the adoring, starry-eyed, sappy romantic sentiment that is apparently required for the curse to be lifted.”

“I wouldn’t say there’s no one.”

Daniel turned, stunned, to find Jack walking toward him with the calm assurance of someone who knew what he wanted and was fully intent on getting it. He strolled right up to Daniel and, looking vaguely self-satisfied, swept him into his arms. “I might not be able to do starry-eyed; and sappy is most likely out.” His smirk softened, his gaze fiercely earnest. “But I can do adoring like nobody’s business. Especially, when I do. Adore you, that is.”

Daniel’s gaze skittered across Jack’s face, from those dark, unfathomable eyes to his firm, pink lips, as though trying to decide which spot was least dangerous. He could get lost in those eyes, had on multiple occasions when Jack was too close. Jack had always accused him of being distracted, lost in his own head, and, with a contrite grin, Daniel had accepted the judgment, never able to tell Jack that he was the real cause of Daniel’s preoccupation.

He opened him mouth, wanted to tell him now, but hadn’t a clue how to begin.

Jack released him suddenly and took a step back, uncertainty marring his handsome features. Loosed from his anchor, Daniel lurch forward, and Jack gripped his shoulder, holding him steady. Again, he turned those deep, dark recesses on Daniel, who once again fell into them.

“Please tell me it’s me you were talking about,” Jack said, with a desperation Daniel had never thought to hear from his strong, confident friend. “That it’s me you’re in love with.”

Gaze drawn to the mouth that he had for an eternity longed to press to his own, Daniel took a moment to process the declaration emanating from them. Jack wanted to be the object of Daniel’s affection, begged it to be so.

He reached up, cupped a hand around the back of Jack’s neck and drew him to his chest, unyielding, and breathed in the smell of him, sweat and clean earth.

Jack’s arms enveloped him, and Daniel shared his contented sigh, rejoicing in the warmth of Jack’s breath on his neck. Jack firmed his hold, and the embrace went on, time stretching until Daniel was convinced Jack would never let him go.

A softly cleared throat broke the spell.

Daniel squirmed, waiting for Jack to let go before moving away. “Tamzi,” he acknowledged the boy apologetically. “I…almost forgot you were there.”

“You have not forgotten, though, why _you_ are here?” the youth asked, his expression alarmed.

Glancing guiltily at Jack, Daniel ran a hand over his rumpled tee shirt. “No, no of course not.”

“Why we’re both here.” Jack’s hand sought Daniel’s at his side, slid into it, holding tight.

“You’re sure?” Daniel asked, tugging the conjoined hands against his chest. His heart skipped a beat as Jack’s hand made contact. “In order to break the curse, we’d have to–”

“I heard. Believe me I want to kiss you. Have wanted to for a very long time.” Jack gazed at him through half-lidded eyes, his mouth quirking into a sweet smile that bordered on shy.

It was incredibly sexy.

“That’s…” Daniel felt on the verge of losing control. This was everything he’d dreamed about. Everything he’d wanted since Jack O’Neill had first sneered at him. Everything…

But this wasn’t about him. It was about two souls who needed their help to escape their prison.

Daniel harshly cleared the lump of emotion from his throat “That’s very nice. And I’d love to discuss that some more when this is all over.” He drew a quick breath, blew it out, his transition from love struck teen to responsible adult complete. “Now, though, I need to know you’re okay with what’s going to happen here.”

“What exactly is going to happen?”

Daniel turned to Tamzi.

“It is a simple matter to release the spirits from you if they are willing.”

A voice sounded in his head, and Daniel echoed its sentiment. “They are.”

“The difficulty comes in the fact there are two of them. As you have experienced, their passions are strong. They have no other outlet but you and your body has suffered under the combined strain of so many emotions.”

“It is a bit…disconcerting,” Daniel confessed.

“To lessen the possibility of further distress, your heart mate – Jack – can take one of the spirits into himself.”

Jack flinched. “Uh, just so I’m clear…you want me to let one of these spirit guys take over my body.”

“They won’t take over, Jack. If that had been their intent, they would have overwhelmed me on day one.”

“Really? It’s nice to know they’ve been holding back,” Jack snarled. “Considering how much crap they’ve put you through in the last few days.”

“You can minimize Daniel’s suffering,” Tamzi urged.

Jack shot him a narrow look. “Why couldn’t you just have put them into two different people to start with?”

“It required contact with the crystals.”

Jack chuckled, a muffled snort that held no humor. “And once you put that tablet in Daniel’s hands, he held onto it like a starving dog given a bone.”

Daniel lifted his hand, molded it to Jack’s cheek and turned his face so they locked eyes. “All they want, Jack, is to be free.”

Jack’s gaze narrowed, his pupils focused pinpoints of scrutiny burrowing into Daniel’s eyes.

Daniel smiled gently. “Trust me, Jack,” he breathed.

“I do. It’s the other guys in your head who have me worried.”

Tamzi made a calming gesture. “You need only harbor one of the spirits for a moment, and I will speak the words of exorcism that will release him.”

“Just a minute, huh?”

“It will be finished before you know it has begun. Now, remove the coverings from your feet.”

“My feet?”

“Your shoes, Jack. Contact with the earth, with the natural world, will complement the spell.”

Jack gave them both a look that said they were crazy then, lowering himself to one of the stone seats, did as he was asked.

Daniel bent at the waist, undid his laces, and toed off his boots. He wrestled off his socks, his toes curling and stretching as though reveling in their freedom.  
  
Barefoot, Jack stood, moved to stand in front of Daniel. He took Daniel’s hand, looked into his eyes. “What do you need me to do?”

Removing his glasses with one hand, Daniel set them on the seat Jack had vacated before again reaching for Jack’s cheek. He curled his fingers, hooked them into Jack’s jaw, guiding him forward. “Just kiss me, Jack. You want to, don’t you?”

“Oh, yeah.” Jack leaned into him.

Lips brushed, a charge like static electricity sparking between them. Jack pulled back slightly, changed the angle of his head and moved in again. He pressed his lips to Daniel’s, firmly; the force of it so sweet, so right, Daniel could have wept with joy. Jack’s lips moved, parted, his tongue knocking, teasing Daniel’s mouth open. It darted in, searching, tasting.

Daniel tilted his head back, affording Jack maximum access. His own tongue rose to meet Jack’s, jabbing, caressing, entwining. Each stroke stoked the flame of desire until Daniel felt his knees go weak.

Jack’s arms surrounded him, lifted him. Daniel gasped, surprised, as they spun to his left. Jack moved quickly, depositing Daniel on his feet, on the woven mat. The descent continued, slow, controlled, Jack guiding him down, down, until Daniel’s knees met the mat.  
  
Jack broke the kiss, and Daniel whimpered at the loss, clutched to him. Jack’s hand cupped the back of his head, directing it to Jack’s shoulder. Fingers combed the short strands of hair.

“You okay?”

Daniel held on, breathed. The hand continued its soothing caress. “Yes,” he said at length. “It’s a bit overwhelming. You have no idea how long I’ve dreamed of this.”

Stirring, Jack pulled back, just far enough to look into Daniel’s eyes. “I wish you had told me.”

“How could I have told you? Our situation is nearly as hopeless as Utu and Ashnan’s. In case you’ve forgotten, the military doesn’t exactly celebrate same sex unions. I couldn’t risk your career like that.

“Plus, not knowing how you’d react…I couldn’t risk our friendship.”

“You should have trusted me.” Jack breathed a heavy sigh before adding, “I should have trusted you.”

“We’re here now, Jack. Let’s not dwell on what could have been. Let’s just enjoy this moment and see where it leads us.”

“Deal.” Jack moved in to claim Daniel’s lips again, but met a roadblock in the form of Daniel’s upraised finger.

“Um, before we get started again – and I find myself without enough oxygen to keep my brain functioning properly – I have a request.”

“Anything.”

“I don’t want to ask you to do something you don’t want to.”

“You won’t.”

The statement was made with such conviction, such faith, that Daniel’s attraction to this man overtook him. Just before he melded his lips with Jack’s he noted movement in the corner of his eye.

 _Tamzi_ , he guessed, then all thought fled, and all he knew was Jack.

~oOo~

Jack held on, letting Daniel have his way. Daniel’s need for their connection was palpable. But suddenly Jack’s need was more pressing; he needed to breathe. He broke the kiss.

“Jack.” His name from Daniel’s lips was soft, reverent. It was an incarnation Jack had never heard before. It was intoxicated…exhilarated…needy. _Please let me be as adept at reading Daniel as I think I am._

“I’m here.” Jack reached up and gingerly touched Daniel’s cheek, a whisper of feeling against his skin. The feeling was electric. “And so is someone else.”

“His name is Utu. He’s the priest and scholar.”

“And he came to me? What could we possibly have in common?”

“He’s also the more protective of the two.”

“Ah. Well, that makes sense then.” He smiled into Daniel’s upturned face, gave him a quick buss on the lips then sat back against the wall, patting the space beside him in invitation. He noted immediately something was off.

“What happened to the kid?”

“He slipped out,” Daniel said as he scooted into place beside Jack.

A warm hand rested on his thigh, sent heat straight to his groin. His dick swelled, the zipper of his BDU pressing uncomfortably against it. Jack’s head fell back against the rock wall, the pain of the collision barely registering as his mouth dropped open, pulling air in large, greedy gasps.

The hand began to knead, and Jack twitched, clawed at it, self-preservation overcoming desire.

Daniel snatched the hand away, clutched it to his own chest, as if trying to keep it from assaulting Jack again. “I’m sorry,” he rasped. “Was that not okay? I thought since you wanted me beside you–”

“Daniel, Daniel,” Jack panted. “Relax. It’s okay. In fact it’s so okay, I was in danger of strangulation, if you get my meaning.” He shot a glance at his bulging groin in case Daniel didn’t.

Daniel followed his gaze, whispered an incredulous, “That’s for me?”

“Well, it’s definitely because of you.” Jack leaned forward, took off his jacket. Cool and damp as the underground cavern was, the room’s temperature seemed to have shot up significantly in the last few minutes.

Daniel watched him, gaze fixed on his groin, his tongue blazing a lazy trail across his upper lip.

Jack dropped the jacket in his lap. Daniel’s eyes snapped up, large and round, the cool blue nearly obscured by his pupils.

He had the decency to flinch, when he realized Jack had found him out.

“Daniel, correct me if I’m off base here,” Jack began. “It’s been a while since I’ve done this. Are you…do you want to take this further?”

“Oh, god, yes!”

“What about…” Jack circled a finger wide enough to encompass both his and Daniel’s heads.

Daniel looked away, and suddenly Jack was sorry he asked.

“That’s the thing you may not want to do. I know it’s our first time, but for Utu and Ashnan…they’ll never have another chance to be together.”

“But we will,” Jack said, and he meant it as a vow. He touched Daniel’s knee. Daniel looked up at him, smiled shyly. Jack’s answering smile was broad, genuinely pleased. “Yeah. Our first time, their last time. Completing the circle.”

“Sounds like the perfect ending to a very sad story.”

“Yeah, I don’t need a bedtime story right now. I’m thinking we can make better use of this mat.”

Jack surged upward, onto his knees. He grasped the lapels of Daniel’s jacket, yanking him up beside him then peeled it from his shoulders in one motion. He pushed the sleeves down, wrapping his arms around Daniel at the same time, trapping Daniel’s arms behind him.

Rather than protest, Daniel pushed himself up against Jack, laving his throat with long, hungry swipes of his tongue. The lapping became more frenetic, localized, until Daniel began to suck on Jack’s Adam’s apple, stabbing at the protrusion with quick flicks of his tongue.

Jack thought he might explode right there.

He stripped Daniel’s jacket from him, reached blindly for his belt buckle. His fingers froze on contact with the metal, the magnitude of the moment hitting him like a two by four.

Daniel pulled away from his throat with a slurping-sucking sound. “Don’t you dare stop now, O’Neill,” he ordered, begged. Tucking his forehead into Jack’s shoulder, he clasped desperately at Jack’s belt, seemingly determined to show him how it was done. Fingers clumsy with want gripped, pinched at the belt as well as the skin beneath until Daniel growled with impatience.

Jack winced, recoiled from the jabbing digits. “Shh,” he calmed, and rested his cheek on top of Daniel’s head. “Take it easy. We’ll get there.”

Harsh and hot, Daniel’s breath bathed his neck, soaked into his tee shirt, tickled his chest. Jack closed his eyes, concentrated on the latch that held Daniel’s belt together.

His own belt fell apart, the zipper dragged slowly down. Warm as his breath, Daniel’s hand skimmed Jack’s belly, delved beneath the waistband of his briefs. Supremely agile fingers brushed the head of his cock.

Stars burst behind his eyelids, a soft gasp shuddering out from between slack lips. Prickling, like an electric charge across his skin, radiated outward, the center of the eruption the swelling in his groin.

Jack’s breath hitched in his throat, and he fumbled for Daniel’s hands, dragged them away from his waist. It took a moment for his brain to override his dick, allowing his mouth to work properly.

“While I appreciate your enthusiasm, unless your goal is to set me off before the main event, you had better steer clear of that area for a while. I’m not as young as I used to be; I can’t promise a second act.”

“Sorry,” Daniel trilled around a fleeting smile, eyelashes fluttering, all innocent.

_You little fucker. So that’s how you want to play it._

Sitting back on his haunches, Jack shucked his tee shirt, tossed it aside with deliberation. Daniel started to follow suit, the hem of his tee raised only high enough to expose the bottom of his ribcage, before Jack seized it, tugged it up and over Daniel’s head, dropping it as soon as it was clear.

Jack rose to his knees. Palms flattened, he tucked his hands into the waistband of his briefs, freed his cock and, guiding the zipper of his BDU pants away from his overly sensitive skin, he pushed the material down, over his ass, to bunch at his knees.

His cock stood bold, unashamed, weeping with need. For Daniel.

A strangled whine bubbled up from Daniel’s throat.

Jack stood with astonishing grace, stepped out of his BDUs and kicked them aside. His shaft bobbed, strained towards the half-parted lips, kiss swollen, mere centimeters away. Daniel sighed, blew a gust of air across the crown. Whether it was purposeful or just a reaction to his closeness, Jack couldn’t tell but the result was the same: a shudder that rocked him so hard he sank again to his knees before his shaky legs dumped him on his ass.

Hands on Daniel’s belt again, he took Daniel’s mouth in a bruising kiss, licking and nipping at his lips, his fingers working to unfasten belt, button and zipper. He skimmed his fingers over Daniel’s flesh, eliciting a shudder, and, turning his hands upward, roughly scraped the heels over Daniel’s ribs. He paused at Daniel’s chest to tweak the sensitive nubs there, pressed the heels of his hands into them as they climbed up and over Daniel’s shoulders.

One hand slipped behind Daniel’s head, fingers splayed against it, thumb caressing his nape. The other slid down his back, pressed into the space just beneath his shoulder blades, pinning him tighter to Jack for a moment.

Maintaining his possession of Daniel’s lips, Jack leaned forward, pushing Daniel down towards the mat. The hand dropped from Daniel’s back spread palm down in the straw, supporting the weight of both men as their descent continued. Midway down, Daniel wrapped his arms around Jack, an anchor from which he could pivot his hips, bringing his legs around to sit on his ass. He pulled his left knee to his chest, curled his foot under to avoid Jack’s balls, and moved the leg over so that he ended up straddling Jack’s knees.

Once Daniel was in position, Jack lowered him all the way to the mat. He broke the kiss, skimming his tongue over the resulting pout, and sat back on his haunches. From this position – with Daniel’s enthusiastic cooperation – it was short work to divest Daniel of his pants and boxers.

Like Jack’s before him, Daniel’s cock stood proud. Lined through with vessels burgeoning with blood, the impressive shaft weaved a slow, seductive dance. The head was plump, pink, perfect.

Jack wanted to shout his elation to the rooftops.

Instead, he pulled a large breath through his nose, meant to fortify him for what came next. He wound up light-headed, a snoot full of Daniel’s scent – warm, musky, virile – draining the blood from his brain, sending it further south.

Daniel’s backside shimmied against his knees. “Hey, remember me?”

“Patience,” Jack growled. He shook his head, focused.

“Patience, my ass,” came the snarky reply. “I’ve been waiting too long for this to just lie here content while you figure out your plan of attack.”

Jack’s scowl reshaped itself into an impish grin. _Okay. You want action…_

A yelp split the air, Daniel caught completely unaware, when Jack sunk his fingers into his hips and heaved, dragging Daniel closer. Jack fell over him, landed on his hands and knees just inches above Daniel, very near to pinning him down. He canted his hips, and skimmed his belly over Daniel’s hypersensitive shaft, careful not to make contact with his own. The resulting moan nearly has him coming.

Daniel surged upward, wrapped his arms around Jack, and attempted to drag him down on top of him. He bucked, his cock seeking the hard heat of Jack’s.

Arms and shoulders straining, Jack held himself at arm’s length, painfully cognizant of the precarious condition of his libido. _Standing right on the precipice here, Daniel._

As though he’d read Jack’s thoughts, Daniel lowered himself to the ground. Eyes capturing Jack’s he wriggled beneath him. He was pure seduction: head tilted back, he gazed at Jack through half-lidded eyes, his nostril flared with heavy breaths drawn in quick, sharp bursts, his mouth, pursed as though in invitation, opened slightly, his soft, pink tongue slinking out to perform a sultry dance along his bottom lip.

Tearing his eyes away, Jack happened to glance downward, between their bodies. The sight was enough to make take his breath away. Beneath his cock, which quivered and wept fat drops of want onto Daniel’s hip, Daniel had splayed himself, completely open to Jack, tantalizing, wanton…

Trusting.

Jack gasped, his gaze coming immediately back to Daniel, whose eyes were now wide-open, round, startled. He narrowed his focus, searched every corner of Daniel’s face, looked deep into his eyes for anything amiss.

“Something wrong?”

Jack sighed. Walking backward on his arms, he sat back on his heels. He hadn’t seen anything of concern. _The only way to know for sure is to ask_. He cleared his throat. “I’m…just a bit worried. You know what’s about to happen here?”

Daniel gave him a look that screamed ‘duh!’ He heaved himself onto his elbows. “Not soon enough to suit me,” he returned testily.

“I’m serious, Daniel. This is a big deal. No playing around here. I want you; don’t think that’s what this is about.” He pulled a large breath. This could be a deal breaker – all his dreams hinged on Daniel’s response.  
  
“I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before…is this really what you want? That stuff the kid gave you…what if it’s lowered your inhibitions?” He glanced down at Daniel’s groin. His cock had wilted a bit with the lull in the action, listing to the side like a drunk seeking a wall to lean on, but it had by no means lost interest in the proceedings. “I see you here, so…vulnerable, waiting for me to…and I gotta wonder if you’re under the influence of some alien drug. Not to mention, you’ve got a spirit in you head, who, let’s face it, has got to be hornier than a preteen in a girl’s locker room.”

Pulling a face at the metaphor, Daniel shook his head. “This is me, Jack. Tamzi’s potion simply eased the muscle spasms; there is no narcotic effect. Ashnan is here. He senses Utu’s presence, and I’ll admit I’m a little more keyed up than I might be otherwise, but he’s been amazingly restrained considering it’s been two thousand years...” His alluringly toned abdominal muscles tensing, Daniel sat up, took Jack’s hands in his own. “It’s not Asnan’s desire I feel, Jack. It’s mine. And I’m not drunk on Tamzi’s potion.” Slowly, he lay back, pulling Jack along by their conjoined hands until they were back in their former positions. Daniel’s gaze was intense, earnest.

“I, Daniel Jackson, want you, Jack O’Neill. All of you. Now.” He hitched his hips towards Jack.

“You mean?” Jack glanced between them, aiming his chin at the cock hovering over Daniel’s opening.

“I mean,” Daniel echoed with a waggle of his brows and a wicked grin.

“Sweet.” Delight turned instantly to concern. “But what about…I mean we’re gonna need some kind of lubricant.”

“Oh.” Daniel’s mouth held the shape of his statement, pursed so temptingly that Jack found it impossible to resist the urge to kiss it.

He missed by a mile, landing a buss on an earlobe when Daniel turned his head. The resulting tremor through Daniel’s body was worth the missed opportunity.

Daniel groaned, panted harshly for a moment, then shifted toward his right, his arm outstretched.

 _Why on earth would he need his glasses now?_ Jack wondered, because what else could he be reaching for? “Uh, Daniel?”

Reeling the arm back in, Daniel tipped his head in the direction he’d been reaching. “There, Jack, that small clay pot. See it? If I’m right, it holds the answer to our lubricant dilemma.”

Jack rolled in the indicated direction, half off of Daniel before he could get a hand on the pot. After a bit of awkward maneuvering to get back in position, he sat back, lifted the lid, took a discreet sniff.

“I don’t smell anything,” he said.

“My guess is linseed oil. One of the ways they use flax.”

Jack set down the lid and dipped a few fingers into the pot. The contents swallowed his fingers, coated them, clinging like motor oil.

Pulling his fingers out, he rubbed them over his thumb, the digits sliding together smoothly. He looked down at Daniel, who gazed at him from under his lashes, his eyes half closed with desire.

Suddenly, Jack was a sixteen-year-old again, totally clueless about what to do in the back seat of his father’s Chevy sedan. “Uh, I don’t know about you, but this is the first time I’ve…”

Daniel’s eyelids slid completely closed, his tongue poking out to moisten his bottom lip. “It’s okay, Jack. You’re doing fine.”

 _So far_ , Jack qualified. Everything they’d done to this point was familiar – sort of. But this was where he veered into very unfamiliar territory. He knew the basics; he wasn’t as clueless as he let some people think. But reading about preparing another man for penetration and doing it were two very different things.

And where the hell was Utu? He’d done this before. Didn’t he have any advice to offer?

Daniel undulated against him, their cocks brushed, and Jack quickly wrapped his other hand around the pot as every part of his body went numb except his groin. That was throbbing like a son-of-a-bitch.

He took a moment, closed his eyes, breathed, until the blood returned to his hands again. He opened his eyes to find Daniel gazing up at him with a devilish grin on his face.

“Bastard,” Jack muttered.

“Just reminding you I’m down here,” Daniel said innocently. “You were so fascinated by the linseed oil, I thought I’d lost you.”

“Ha Ha.” Jack aimed a frown at the pot. His problem remained. “I’m going to be honest here, Daniel. I’m a bit freaked out. I don’t want to hurt you. Maybe you should do this part yourself.” He offered the pot to Daniel, who took it and set it by Jack’s knee.

“You’ll do fine, Jack.” Daniel reached, up, took Jack’s oiled hand in his. Without warning, he lifted his right leg, bent his left leg, pushed himself up, and hooked his knee over Jack’s shoulder. He used the leverage to get his left leg over the other shoulder. In a move that would have done a contortionist proud, he doubled at the waist, and pressed a firm kiss to Jack’s chest. Guiding Jack’s oiled digits to where they were most needed, he reclined back. His thighs tightened against Jack’s neck as he angled his ass upward.

The puckered entrance slid into view beneath Daniel’s balls. Daniel’s scent was strong in his nose, rich, heady. Jack brushed the tip of his finger experimentally over the perineum. A violent shudder and Daniel’s hitched breath told Jack he didn’t have as much prep time as he’d hoped.

He held his breath and slid one oiled finger in. The sphincter tightened, latched onto the digit drawing it deeper.

“Whoa. Eager much?”

There was that ‘duh’ look again. “To make love with you? You’d better believe it.”

Heat built below Jack’s stomach, raced up his body. “Why Doctor Jackson. You’re a bit of a slut, aren’t you? Should have known. It’s those quiet ones you have to watch out for.”

His eyes narrowed, and Daniel opened him mouth to reply. His intended retort degraded to a guttural groan as Jack slid a second finger home.

“Won’t be long now,” he promised.

Daniel waited only as long as it took Jack to scissors his fingers three times. “How about now?” he suggested. “I know this is your first time, Jack but I’ve done this before. I don’t need much preparation.”

“Daniel, I don’t want to hurt–”

“It won’t hurt nearly as much as the current ache in my balls. I don’t know how much longer I can stand it.”

Teeth worrying his bottom lip in indecision – so not his comfort zone – Jack worked a little longer. When he was sure he had done all that he could, all that Daniel would allow in his agitated state, he tapped Daniel’s thigh.

“Okay, come on down a bit.”

Daniel obligingly slid his knees over Jack’s shoulders, nestling his legs into the crooks of Jack’s elbows.

Jack gripped Daniel’s hips, flashed a crooked smile. “You ready?”

“Is that a rhetorical question?”

Taking in a breath, Jack moved forward. He glanced down, gaped at his cock as if just now realizing what he was about to do with it. He set Daniel’s foot on the ground, unwound his arm from beneath his knee and dove for the small pot. Scooping up a few fingerfuls of the oil, he slid it gingerly up and down his shaft.

Satisfied, he dumped the pot, took Daniel’s leg over his arm again. He shrugged into the questioning look Daniel gave him. “You might think you’re ready but I can’t be too careful.”

Daniel must have taken it as an expression of love because he reached for Jack, breathed, “Come here,” and clutching Jack’s face in a bruising hold, tugged him forward and placed a scalding kiss on his mouth.

Dazed and breathless, Jack sat back, watched Daniel whose attention was fixed on him as Jack took his own cock in hand. Daniel’s talented tongue circled his parted lips just before they puffed out on an excited hiss.

Jack lined it up with Daniel’s entrance, resumed his hold on Daniel’s hips to steady him and nudged forward.

He encountered resistance, totally unlike anything he’d experienced with a woman and would have pulled back but for Daniel’s encouragement.

“Keep going,” he cheered. Demanded actually.

Jack obeyed, increasing the pressure against Daniel’s opening until, with what felt like a pop, the crown of his dick slid inside.

Silken heat enveloped him, hugged him tighter than Jack believed possible. He thought he might pass out.

Beneath him, Daniel whimpered. “So good,” he muttered over and over. “More.”

The plea penetrated the fog of his own pleasure, and Jack fell onto his hands. One of Daniel’s legs slipped from its anchor but neither man protested as Jack canted his hips, thrust ahead. He inched forward, deeper.

Closing his eyes as the sensations became too much, Jack concentrated on Daniel’s breathy mutterings. Some of it he recognized – English, Ancient Egyptian, Russian. Earth-based languages. He didn’t always know what Daniel was saying, but it was familiar. The words flowed like poetry even in the transition from one tongue to another. It was an odd time to think it but he realized suddenly just how gifted Daniel was. Not that he hadn’t already noticed how much he had to offer.

So engrossed was he in his fascination with Daniel’s voice, he jolted when his balls met Daniel’s heated flesh. The bump prompted a cry from Daniel, vastly different from those that had so captivated Jack. It was a raspy sound, ecstasy verging on pain.

“You all right?” Jack gasped.

The reply was more of a grunt. “Just…gimme a minute.” Daniel’s bottom lip disappeared into his mouth. Eyes pinched tight, he tilted his head back, the long, luscious lines of his neck tempting Jack to taste.

Air was coming in short, rapid bursts through Daniel’s nostrils. The breaths were accompanied by a low moan, which appeared to originate in Daniel’s throat. Sound and breath merged, became rhythmic, measured. The space beneath Daniel’s ribcage quivered, his shoulders shaking with small paroxysms…

Of laughter. _What the hell?_

“Care to let me in on the joke?”

Daniel threw an arm over his face, wiped tears from his eyes as he pulled it back. He took a couple large breaths then lowered his chin, looked Jack in the eye. There was no amusement there.

“Sorry,” he said. “It, ah, it occurred to me suddenly that it was you that was…” He made a stabbing gesture with his finger. “And I think I got a little hysterical. This is…” Daniel touched Jack’s cheek with the pads of his fingers, like Jack was writing on an artifact from some long forgotten civilization that Daniel longed to understand. “I know its cliché, but this is like a dream come true. **My** dream come true. I just got a bit overwhelmed with the immensity of it all.”

Jack nudged Daniel’s hand with his jaw, nuzzled into Daniel’s palm, his day old growth of beard, scraping softly against calloused fingertips. He turned his head, pressed a passionate kiss against Daniel’s wrist.

Daniel watched him, eyed narrowed, as though he was jealous of the attention his arm was getting. Jack swiped the tip of his tongue over Daniel’s pulse point, sucking in a ragged breath when Daniel shuddered and tightened around him. As much out of desire as fear he couldn’t hold himself up much longer, Jack fell forward. Their chests collided in a shared blast of breath.

Daniel pulled his knees closer to his body, freeing Jack’s arms from their burden. With a smile, Jack slid his hands along Daniel’s hips, and cupped the perfect globes of his ass. Covering Daniel’s mouth with is own, he pulled out slightly, crashed back in. Daniel’s moan caromed off his teeth, echoed in his head.

Encouraged by the sound, and the way Daniel grasped desperately at his shoulder, his side, Jack repeated the move, withdrawing just a bit further this time before slamming home. He did it again, and again, the time between retreat and advance growing shorter with each stroke. Finally, he had to let go of Daniel’s mouth so they could breathe.

In the midst of his assault on Daniel’s ass, Jack canted his hips slightly. The head of his dick bumped something deep inside, and Jack thought Daniel might send them both crashing into the ceiling, so violent was the jolt.

Daniel pulled him closer. “Again,” he rasped into Jack’s ear.

Jack obliged, changing angle slightly so that he rubbed Daniel’s sweet spot every time he dove in. Daniel tensed, shuddered, whispered, “Jack,” with increasing intensity.

The utterances died on Daniel’s massive intake of breath. He stiffened, and suddenly Jack was the one who couldn’t breathe. Daniel’s ass tightened around him as Daniel jerked with an abandon that in another setting could have been seizures.

There was a niggling feeling in his brain – a nudge similar to that he experienced when he was trying to remember something important – and suddenly every particle of Jack’s being seemed focused on his connection to Daniel, the joining of their bodies. Daniel lurched again, and though he squeezed Jack with no more force than previously, every inch of Jack’s penis prickled with excitement. He thrust into Daniel, matching Daniel’s wild inhibition.

Daniel had begun to murmur again, nonsensical to Jack. He gained understanding with the shock of memory not his own. These were terms of endearment, spoken from one who went willingly with his lover to their shared doom rather than face life alone. It was the saddest thing Jack had ever heard, but he was supremely honored to have been privy to such a declaration of love.

Just when he thought the excess of sensation would overwhelm him to the point of insanity, Jack’s balls tightened, his dick charged with one final spark of exhilaration before he began spilling himself into Daniel.

The words faltered as Daniel gasped harshly, more unintelligible with each gusting exhalation. His respirations quickened, his mutterings contracted, building to a deafening crescendo.

“Jack!”

Jack cried out, exultant, at his name on Daniel’s lips. He’d heard Daniel say his name using every inflection known to man from disbelief to disgust. This was the sweetest rendition of all. ‘I love you,’ it said.

Beneath the euphoria was another feeling: gratitude. For Daniel’s acclamation, yes, but for something else, too. Something not his. It was then he realized, Utu had left him – quietly, unobtrusively, leaving behind a vague impression of thanks.

Completely spent, Jack collapsed on top of Daniel, his grunt of exhaustion matched by Daniel’s own.

~oOo~

“I am a man of the great lord Enlil,  
He has put his pure spell to my spell;  
He has put his pure mouth to my mouth;  
He has put his pure prayer to my prayer.  
By the magic of the word of Enlil, rest,  
Escape these humble vessels and take  
your place in the hereafter.”

Tamzi lifted his hands in supplication, confident Enlil would answer his plea. The hairs on the back of his neck rose, a chill travelling the length of his spine. Within his head, a voice whispered, “Thank you,” and Tamzi knew that Utu and Ashnan were at peace.

“As it was foretold.” Tamzi lowered his arms, releasing his breath in a slow stream.

He glanced back down the tunnel, to the curtained off room glowing faintly with ghostly light. The jubilant shouts of those inside were swallowed by the rock. There was no fear of detection; their secret was safe here.

Their only witness, Tamzi sighed happily, elated for the new lovers who had finally found one another. He smiled, congratulating himself on the foresight to put a pot of grease by the bed.

He straightened, made his way back up the tunnel into the daylight. Daniel and O’Neill would be hungry. He startled, having forgotten their teammates were waiting above.

“It is done,” he assured them.

Major Carter reached for Daniel’s pack at her feet. “Can we go to them?”

“Not yet,” Tamzi hastily replied. His mind raced for an excuse. “Daniel is still weary from the experience,” he equivocated, unable to meet their eyes. “O’Neill will see that he is well cared for.”

Carter nodded curtly, seemingly annoyed but accepting of the news. The one called Teal’c gave him an odd look, a slow smile softening his fearsome features.

_Perhaps not so secret after all._

Teal’c dipped his head in an amiable bow. Tamzi returned the gesture and went in search of sustenance. Ea would be in the kitchen, preparing the meal to be set for Enlil. The most he could hope for was a heartfelt smile and a surreptitious brush of hands. For now.

Tamzi had a feeling the fates were not yet through with Daniel.

~oOo~

In the immediate aftermath of their union, Jack’s not inconsiderable weight making him a captive – albeit a willing one – the last thing Daniel had anticipated was Tamzi’s return. Jack heard him first, of course, very little got by those highly trained senses, especially in a foreign environment.

Daniel had been on the verge of slumber, his Jack blanket making him feel warm and protected, when suddenly it was ripped from him as Jack flew up, rolling towards their discarded clothing. He came up wrapping the arms of a jacket around his waist. Fortunately, it was the inside of the jacket that covered his private parts, Daniel thought absurdly. At least they wouldn’t have to explain the stain to Sam and Teal’c.

Jack gestured to the door. “Someone’s out there,” he whispered harshly. “You might want to put on some clothes.”

Scrambling in the dim light, Daniel came up with a sock, discarded it as too ridiculous and dove for a dark shadow that he soon discovered was a tee shirt. His as it turned out, as evidenced by the small tear his finger poked through. The tear Jack had made in his haste to disrobe Daniel.

He scampered to a place next to Jack, crouched against the wall like a hunted thing, and dragged the tee across his spent cock.

“O’Neill,” a voice called tentatively, “Daniel.”

Daniel’s breath left him in a rush, taking with it the tension that kept him on his feet. He dropped heavily to his butt. “It’s Tamzi.”

The edge of the curtain moved, a dark head poking through the doorway.

“I do not wish to disturb you,” Tamzi said apologetically. “I have brought you something to eat and–”

“Thank you,” Daniel said, as Jack barked, “Thanks! You can leave it there.”

Tamzi flinched, set a platter and a small package on the ground just inside the door. He backed into the hallway. “I sense my spell has been successful,” he called through the gauze.

“Yes,” Daniel confirmed. “Because of you, Utu and Ashnan are free. Together.”

“Because of you, Daniel. You risked much. If not for your willingness to act as an intermediary between their prison and true release…”

Daniel sought, captured Jack’s gaze. “I gained much more than I was ever in danger of losing.”

“It is so.” There was conviction in the comment, and Daniel wondered what else Tamzi sensed.

Daniel ducked his head, smiled. “Thank you, Tamzi.”

“I have invited Major Carter and Teal’c to dine with me. You need not return to the surface until you are ready.” Muffled footsteps receded down the hallway.

Jack dropped the jacket, lumbered to the doorway. He peeked through the curtain before taking up the items and hot-footing it back to the mat. He handed the tray to Daniel and came to his knees.

“Warm, wet towels,” Jack said, unwrapping the package. He whisk the tee shirt from Daniel’s lap.

A faint clean scent twitched Daniel’s nose as the cloth scraped his stomach. He set the tray down with as much care as he could muster, leaning heavily on the rock wall, as Jack worked his way down. He spread his legs open, giving Jack full access, and closed his eyes to focus on Jack’s ministrations.

He must have dozed because when he opened his eyes Jack was just finishing cleaning himself. He tossed the towels aside and sat with his back against the wall.

Daniel smiled sheepishly. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Jack spread his legs, patted the open space.

Daniel leapt at the invitation. Ensconced between Jack’s legs, back against his chest, Daniel adjusted his tee shirt over his lap. It was an egotistical move, designed more to disguise the now defunct glory of his manhood than for modesty. There was no need for modesty now; they were alone again.

He waved a finger over the tray, chose a juicy date and lifted it over his left shoulder. A hum of appreciation sounded in his ear, and Jack’s mouth closed over the fruit, together with the tips of Daniel’s fingers. Jack pressed a little kiss behind Daniel’s ear.

Daniel dropped his hand into his lap. With a contented sigh, he snuggled into Jack’s shoulder, Jack’s working jaw massaging the side of his head. He closed his eyes,

Jack loved him, had loved him since… Daniel’s gaze dipped to the hands in his lap, which had begun fidgeting. While he seemed to be staring at his fingers, his thoughts were far away. A hand on his shoulder brought him back to the little alcove with Jack.

“Hey,” Jack prompted, “you still with me?”

Daniel aimed a small smile over his shoulder. “I’m here.”

“But not so much a minute ago. What’s going on?”

“I guess I’m just a bit…I don’t know…down?” Realizing what he’d said, Daniel clasped at the hand, clung to it desperately. “Don’t get me wrong; what we just did together…I’ve never been happier.”

“But you can’t help thinking about Utu and Ashnan.” There was no anger, no condemnation, just understanding.

“Sorry.”

“I’m not. Your compassion is part of why I love you so much.” He folded Daniel into a hug, kissed his hair. “But Daniel, they’re fine now. I don’t know about you, but when Utu left me, I felt a sense of relief…not relief to be rid of him; the relief was his, not mine. He’s thankful for how things ended. He and Ashnan are finally back together after two thousand years.”

Daniel took hold of Jack’s arms, pulled them tighter against his chest. “It wouldn’t have happened without you. Thank you for allowing Utu to inhabit your body. You gave them the opportunity to truly be together one last time.”

“To be honest, I forgot he was there. At least until the end. And I’m kinda glad he stayed out of the way, you know?”

“I could sense Ashnan the whole time, just out of reach of my consciousness. You may not have been able to feel Utu, but Ashnan did. They had a vicarious experience through us.

“Well, I was amply compensated. I don’t know if it was intentional, but just as I started to come…”

“It was like everything was centered on the place where you and I met.”

“Yeah.”

“I guess after not having sex for two thousand years, their feelings were increased by the power of ten. Like with the food. Their presence magnified every sensation.”  
  
“Well,” Jack grunted in his ear. “I hope you won’t be disappointed next time when we don’t have the advantage of the ghost-enhanced experience.”

Daniel’s shaft jumped at the promise of ‘next time.’ He turned in Jack’s arms, cradled the back of his head. “I won’t be,” he whispered, and pressed his lips to Jack’s.

~oOo~

They emerged from their subterranean love den to find the people of P4C-724 streaming out a doorway on the exterior wall. Carter and Teal’c approached with their gear. Jack immediately began to kit up.

“Daniel?”

“I’m fine, Sam,” Daniel assured her with a smile. “In fact, I’ve never been better.”

“It is good to see you well, Daniel Jackson.”

“Thank you, Teal’c.”

Daniel did a double take. Teal’c looked like a tea kettle on the verge of screaming, his normally blank features threatening to break out in elation at any moment.

_How does he know?_

Daniel gave Jack a sideward glance. He’d seen it too. Cool under pressure, as always, Jack merely swung his hand in a grand gesture at the population. “What’s going on here?”

“Enlil is returning.”

“What? How do you know?”

“Enu announced it about fifteen minutes ago. They expect to meet him outside.”

“Outside?” Daniel echoed, surprised. “Not in the temple?”

Sam shrugged. “I guess not. People have been heading for the exits since the announcement.”

“Well, that doesn’t make any sense.” Daniel quickly donned his vest. Pack and jacket dangling from his hand, he blended into the crowd, his team hot on his six. As they passed under the wall, Daniel heard someone shout his name. Tamzi waved at him from the edge of the moat. He stood with Enu and the other priests. Daniel worked his way through the crowd.

As he neared, Tamzi hurried forward, grasped his arm to pull him by his side. “Have you heard?”

“Yes, Enlil is coming.”

“Why now?” Jack yelled to be heard over the crowd. “I mean, you said he hadn’t been seen in generations.”

“I believe it is in response to my petition.”

Daniel glanced at Enu who seemed not the least bit perturbed by the news. “Your petition?”

“When you did not return, I feared for you and for those whom I had forced upon you. I confessed everything to Enu. He had no answer himself but advised that I speak to Enlil. I am as amazed as you that after all this time he consented to appear before us.”

At Daniel’s side, Jack shifted, leaned in. “You think maybe there’s a radio or something in the temple? Enlil could hear them calling all along and finally chose to respond?”

Daniel shook his head. Jack’s version of events was as likely as any he could come up with.

The water in the moat began to stir. A circle of bubbles came up, causing some to gasp, others to cry out.

A disc-shaped object broke the surface, several shades lighter than the blue of the water. Slowly, it increased in size, revealing a ridged forehead, pale, beady eyes and a jowl adorned with pendulous flaps of skin. The god stood. His body was dark, mottled, his hands large, his long fingers linked together with webbing.  
  
Realization struck. _Of course, why didn’t I figure it out sooner? Sumer was defeated by Babylon four thousand years ago…about the time that Belus killed Nem’s wife…Belus is also a name for Marduk…Enlil left the region four thousand years ago, and, according to history, Marduk supplanted Enlil as the predominant god in the region…_

_He’s one of the Oannes who helped Omoroca fight the Goa’uld._

“Enlil,” Daniel drawled, his voice soft with admiration.

Jack scoffed. “That’s Enlil? He doesn’t look anything like his statue.”

“I’m guessing that statue was based on the mythology of the god, not the reality.”

“Guess a burly guy in a horned hat is more impressive than a giant fish man. Though, he does sort of remind me of the Creature from the Black Lagoon. Now that was a scary movie.”

“Shh,” Daniel hissed as Enlil moved within earshot.

He gazed up at them from the moat. A hissing intake of breath, similar to one of Janet’s respirators preceded his first words. “I would speak with the priest whose summons I am answering,” he said, pausing midway through to snatch another breath.

Tamzi fell to his knee, bowed his head. “I am he.” He gestured back toward the crowd. “This is Enu.”

Enlil aimed a disconcertingly probing gaze at the head priest. “I am aware,” he wheezed. He turned, took in the worshippers on the shore. “I would speak with you. Away from the crowds.”

Tamzi looked up, flinched as though Enlil had just materialized before him. “Lord, I cannot speak for the people. I would not usurp Enu’s place.”

“I do not ask you to speak for your people,” he drawled, each word pushed up from his throat with effort. “Only to speak with me. You have the greatest knowledge of things present and past. Yours is an insight that will best suit my needs.”

“The great Lord Enlil speaks wisdom,” Enu coaxed. “You must do as he asks.”

Tamzi shot anxious eyes his way, drawn by his voice. He took the words in, stood and bowed to Enlil. “I am my Lord’s servant.”

Enlil turned, headed for the opposite shore.

Tamzi made to follow, skirting the worshippers standing on the shore, headed for the bridge. Daniel gave him a smile of encouragement as he passed. Tamzi froze.

“My Lord,” he called to Enlil, continuing when the god turned to listen. “If I may. This one,” he put a hand on Daniel’s shoulder, caught a glimpse of Jack standing behind him and turned to incorporate him into his gesture of acknowledgement, “…these two likewise have knowledge. They may also be of use to you.”

Enlil gave Daniel a long look. His eyes widened noticeable when Jack stepped out from behind Daniel, but he gave a curt nod and continued to the shore.

Tamzi let out a slow breath, no doubt relieved to have company for the god’s inquest. “Come,” he barked and hurried to the bridge.

By the time they got through the crowd and crossed the bridge, Enlil had made it to shore. He lumbered through an opening between buildings, away from the desert sun. His wheezing increased.

“I am unfitted for this environment; I can stay for only a short time. Let us proceed so that I may retreat to my home in the sea.”

“There’s a sea nearby?” Daniel gasped as Enlil turned his narrowed gaze on him. He hadn’t meant to talk out of turn but how often did he get to meet an alien god? He had so many questions.

“Sorry,” he hastened to add, “I’m Daniel Jackson. This is Jack O’Neill. We’re visitors to this world. Please forgive my curiosity.”

Enlil continued to stare for a moment, an imperious look, before replying simply, “This river flows from here, across the desert to the sea. The journey takes several days and can only be made during those times when the rains have swelled the river banks.”

“You couldn’t have found a better planet to settle on?” Jack wanted to know.

The look Enlil gave him was a cross between annoyance and intrigue. It seemed he was adjusting to their inquisitiveness.

Daniel elaborated. “Uh, we know you spent time on Earth.”

Giving a great hissing sigh that seemed to leave him deflated, Enlil nodded. “It had become my home. It has been four thousand of your years since I was forced to flee from there. An evil race, the Goa’uld, attacked the city, my people. They were intent upon destroying us. Many were captured – destined to live as slaves, subject to the whim of the creatures that invaded their bodies. Many others were killed, their smoking remains littering the streets of a once beautiful city, mocking me.

“I had allies in the battle, others like me who had come to Earth to protect the people, to teach them to defend themselves against those parasites.” Enlil stopped talking suddenly, his chest heaving, Daniel thought, with the thin air. It soon became apparent that grief was the real culprit.

“They fought bravely, my friends. One by one, they stood before the Goa’uld, defiant, leading my people against them. One by one, they fell…until only she was left.” The last was said so softly, Daniel had to lean forward to hear him. Enlil lowered his head, gasped for a moment. When his eyes came back onto view, they were shadowed with great pain.

“When all seemed lost,” he began again, slowly, “she encouraged me to flee, to save as many of my people as I could.” His shoulders stooped lower with the weight of his memories. “I argued with her, of course, but she reminded me that the survival of my people was my highest priority. “She selected a few of my people, would take them to create a distraction. I gathered the rest and directed them to my ship. I followed after, but I had to turn to see her one last time.” Enlil heaved a weighty sigh that faltered mid-inhalation, a kind of sob. “I saw her cut down by the Goa’uld leader, one called Belus.”

The pain of reliving it had him clutching at his chest as though the staff that killed the woman he loved – for surely that was who he mourned – had pierced his own heart. His body convulsed in silent misery.

Daniel watched him, his mind reeling with the information he’d been given. Was it possible that he had just met the one person who could answer all of Nem’s questions?  
  
At length, Enlil drew a deep breath, stood taller. “I wanted to die, too. But to honor her, I brought my people to a new home. I helped them build, planned irrigation, prepared their soil for planting. I appointed their leaders, men I believed to be of great character.

“Once they were established, I returned here less frequently, even when the river flowed swiftly. I care for my people but my mind – my heart – was elsewhere. They could not remedy the ache in my being, so I took to solitude. I did not leave my people without hope; I placed a communication device in the temple as a means to summon me.”

Jack poked Daniel in the arm, raised his brows in a ‘got it right’ kind of way, pleased that Enlil had confirmed his theory that there was a radio in the ziggurat.

“I returned only occasionally, however. I was required to appoint a new Enu when the time came, but otherwise I answered only their most urgent pleas.

“Two thousand years ago, a drought ravaged the land. Famine and disease followed. The population declined rapidly. I left the Enu at the time with the instruction to reinstate the directive for all men to aid in procreation. I did not, however, advise him to deny the right to love as each individual pleased. Loving, without having that love returned, is a fate I would not wish on anyone.

“I did not discover that the Enu had abused the power I had bestowed up on him; that he had ordered that men could no longer choose the person with whom they desired to spend their life, until this one,” he aimed a webbed hand at Tamzi, “contacted me.” He turned, pounded a fist against the wall behind him. “All those hearts shattered because of one man – a man I had placed above them.”

“He was the anointed of Enlil,” Tamzi ventured. “None dared challenge him.”

Enlil stared mutely for a moment then nodded firmly. “As you say. None dared to question the authority given by Enlil and as a result he was never held accountable for the heinous deed done to my young priest and his lover.

“The Enu was evil; I am sorry I did not remove him before such harm was done.”

“I have discovered some of his writings in the repository,” Tamzi disclosed. “Once he had determined to have Utu at any cost, he scoured the library for a means to get him. He sought dark magic as his answer, though he was never able to lure Utu even with the aid of evil forces.”

“Utu’s love for Ashnan was too pure. Like mine for you.”

Daniel trembled, Jack’s quiet vow delving straight to his heart.

Enlil sighed. “He was, however, able to use it to make their souls suffer, in addition to the countless men over the centuries whose hearts have been broken by his decree. A decree I did not – would not – validate.

“Thanks to you, priest, their anguish shall not be in vain. The law must be rescinded. No one should be denied the love of one whose heart has captivated their own.”

“You said something like that before,” Daniel ventured. “The female who encouraged you to leave Earth…it was she who ‘captivated your heart’.”

“Yes.” He drew the word out, the sound almost like air let out of a tire. “But her heart was not mine to take; she had a mate already. She left him only to join the fight against the Goa’uld. Her name was–”  
  
“Omoroca,” Daniel broke in.

“You have heard tell of her?”

“I have.” Daniel paused, weighed the pain he might cause Enlil with the obligation he had to tell him the truth. Enlil would prefer truth to compassion, he decided. “From her mate.”

“Nem.” His rival’s name was said so casually, as though he were remembering an acquaintance.

“You know him?”

“Only what I have heard from Omoroca.” Though he was speaking to them, Daniel saw from Enlil’s rapt expression that his gaze had turned inward as he once again thought of his love. “She spoke of him often. He was away when she heard of our battle. She did not tell me where. She left her home and came to help defend my people, believing till the end that she would return to him.”

He shook himself, gave Daniel a look of despair. “How devastated he must have been to learn of her death.”

Daniel simply nodded. “His grief was as great as yours.” Enlil gasped, and Daniel gently added, “Your grief is not nullified by the fact that she was not free to return your love.”

Enlil held Daniel’s gaze for a moment, sadness slowly giving way to determination. “Love is too great a treasure to be regarded with indifference,” he declared at length. “That is why I was so incensed when I learned that the Enu was not allowing my people to freely love the one who speaks to their heart.”

Daniel’s eyes were irresistibly drawn to Jack’s, and he returned the arduous look Jack sent him. He dragged his gaze away to Omoroca’s would-be suitor.

“You know,” he ventured tentatively, “I can help you get in touch with Nem. That is, if you wanted to meet him. You two have much in common.”

Enlil blinked at him, dumbfounded, but beneath the bemusement, Daniel recognized a spark of welcome for the suggestion. Daniel flashed a hopeful smile. As much as he wished to alleviate Nem’s longing for details of his mate’s final days, he realized that meeting Nem would give Enlil some closure as well.

~oOo~

A faint smile curled the edge of Daniel’s mouth as he lowered his mug of coffee, the shuffle-clop of Jack’s distinctive gait reaching him even through his absorption in his work. Not all that long ago, he would have remained lost in his ancient texts until Jack poked him verbally, or, if Daniel continued to ignore him, emotionally, by threatening one of Daniel’s precious artifacts. Jack’s appearance in his work environment used to annoy him. Now, he longed for that strong, reassuring presence, apparently to the point he subconsciously listened for Jack’s arrival.

He looked up as the subject of his musings rounded the doorway.

“Hey,” Jack said simply.

“Hey.” Daniel set down the mug and returned his attention to his books, doing his best to hide the smile that wanted to break out all over his face.

Sauntering to the opposite side of Daniel’s work station, Jack reached for the clay cup that was perched on the corner nearest him. Rather than picking the object up, he fingered it like someone who was nervous might do. But what would Jack have to be nervous about?

“We heard back from Nem. He’s interested in meeting Enlil.”

Daniel beamed. “That’s good news. I think they can help each other heal.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Jack said, clearly not as expectant as Daniel. “So, what’s with all the books?”

“I’m doing research for Tamzi’s petition to overturn the law against homosexuality.”

“I thought Enlil settled that; he said it was never his intention for the Enu to ban men from being together.”

“He did. But as we found out, Enlil is not always around. And since the law was never rescinded, Tamzi wants to make sure it gets into the community archives so that no one ever again has the opportunity to take advantage of the old law. If he were king, Enu could just rewrite it. As it is, in order to override the law set down by a previous Enu, the current Enu must show it is necessary. Enu has asked to see the law as it stood in ancient Sumer.”

“Do we have any idea what capabilities opponents to this law might have? I mean, could you imagine if the President all of a sudden issued an order that made homosexual relationships equal with heterosexual ones? There would be no end to the protests. Some might even be violent.”

Daniel thought to express his wish the President would issue such an order; chaos be damned. Instead he said, “Their society is different. Enu is their ruler; once he makes the decision, the people will abide by what he says.”

“I hope you’re right.” Jack pulled a wry grin. “But then, in these matters, you usually are.”

“I’ll have to see if security can give me an audio version of that statement,” Daniel said archly. “It might save me a lot of breath arguing the next time you want to question my suggestion regarding the way we interact with an alien society.”

Jack grunted, a challenge Daniel read as easily as ancient Egyptian: ‘Go ahead and try it if you think it will do you any good.’ He waved a hand over the books gathered on Daniel’s desk. “So, what is your part in all this?”

“I’m checking my sources on ancient Mesopotamian law. I’ve already found references to ceremonies uniting men in marriage. I’m confident we can show homosexuality was always an acceptable life style.” Daniel turned a page, set down his pen. “I just wish it had been in time to save Utu and Ashnan.”

“Yeah. They’re together now though.”

“They are, or at least their spirits are. But most Mesopotamian literary accounts describe the afterlife as a shadowy, dulled version of life on earth. While they will know each other, they won’t have the same perceptions, the same sensitivity or joyfulness…all those unique personality traits that made them…them will be gone. It doesn’t promise much hope for the kind of love they experienced while living.”

“Come on! Are you kidding? After the send off we gave them? I don’t care what their mythology says; nobody who experienced that level of happiness is going to settle for less. I bet they’re painting one of those dull rooms chartreuse as we speak.”

Daniel couldn’t help but smile. “Chartreuse?”

“What? It’s a happy color.”  
  
“I guess it is.” Caught up in Jack’s optimism for a moment, Daniel sobered. “I was feeling pretty miserable before you came in here. I know death is better than being trapped the way they were, but the thought that it had to end…what should have been a wonderful love story.”

“Well, even if it did end, it’s still a great start for us.”

“What do you mean?”

Jack bent over, resting his forearms on Daniel’s work bench. It occurred to Daniel to protest Jack’s potential for crinkling the pages of his very old text until he noticed Jack’s left hand was positioned so that, were he so inclined, Daniel could have stroked it with his thumb. His cheek warmed with Jack’s breath, the vision in his right eye obscured by a light fog on his glasses.

“What happened on that planet…it can’t end there. It was…well I don’t think ‘life changing’ is too strong a word for it.”

“Actually that’s two words…” Daniel flashed an impish grin. “You’re absolutely right, though. I know I’ll never be the same knowing that…” He licked his lips, his mouth suddenly desert dry.

Jack glanced over his shoulder. When he turned back, he smiled and gave Daniel a slow, lecherous looking over. “That I think you’re the hottest thing on two legs?”

Heat flushed through him, and Daniel sat back, away from the source of his discomfiture. He just managed to keep from snatching up his memo pad to fan himself. As Jack continued to watch him, the heat localized and settled somewhere in the vicinity of his lap. Suddenly, his BDU pants were uncomfortably snug.

 _Guess I’d better get used to it._ Before they left, Tamzi had divined their fate to be happy together for many years.

Seemed he and Jack were on the same wavelength. “You know, I’m thinking maybe this divining fate thing isn’t such hooey after all,” he said with one of his lop-sided grins. “Because I plan to make you very happy for the rest of our lives. This one and the next.”

Daniel smiled. “Now, that’s a fate I can live with.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Antares has created some incredible artwork for this fic. You can find it here: http://archiveofourown.org/works/5550716


End file.
